Luna Lovegood and the Arithmancy of Explosions
by suyjuris
Summary: Luna, Dumbledore and Voldemort have one thing in common: They are not who they seem to be. Their paths cross in the ministry, in a clash of careful planning, devious traps and embarrassing incompetence. Can the fourth-year Ravenclaw prevail against the most devoted followers of the Dark Lord—and Hogwarts ever-falling safety standards?
1. Burning Letters

Voldemort paced angrily in front of the fireplace, which seemingly flared at every one of his steps. Across the room, his most devoted follower, Bellatrix Lestrange, knelt on the ground, her mismatched eyes tracking him with something akin to worship. She remained silent, knowing better than to disturb her lord's concentration.

"My ritual has concluded ... the boy's dreams are corrupted and he will surely come to his godfather's aid." The Dark Lord spoke quietly to himself. "Now Lucius must obey his commands, and lead my other servants to lay the trap at the ministry. The prophecy will finally be _mine_!"

Bellatrix started cackling madly, only to stop awkwardly as she noticed her lord staying quiet.

"My Lord, the Potter boy will not defy you again," she whispered, barely audible over the crackling fire. "I will see to it ... _personally_."

"You will. Or I would be most displeased." Voldemort confirmed, sparing her a single glance, promptly sending her into shivers.

"Your power truly is without limits, my Lord. Even within the walls of Hogwarts, the Potter boy is not safe from your might," Bellatrix began. "I cannot comprehend your greatness, for the wards have been erected by Lord Slytherin himself, holding strong for millennia."

The Dark Lord turned around, smiling indulgently.

"Bella. I have gone further in the Dark Arts than any have dared, even my most noble ancestor. My arcane wealth of knowledge allowed me to improve upon an old ritual, found in Lucius' own library."

"My Lord, once again your brilliance eclipses my understanding! I should not have doubted you for even a second!" Bellatrix suddenly cried out.

"Do not concern yourself with these matters, Bella, for they exceed your magical abilities." Voldemort admonished. _Actually, I had only to remove a number of useless runes, which only limited the spell. It is almost as if the designers were afraid of powerful magic!_ He laughed condescendingly. _I believe they even have a term for it—limiters. Fools! The only thing they limit is themselves._

Just then, an owl knocked politely against the window. Owls always were on their best behaviour when near dark lords, a survival instinct honed over many centuries of abuse—which indirectly subsidised them, as they could skimp on their Daily Prophet subscription fees.

Bellatrix took the letter and read it out loud, while the owl quickly scurried away. Another instinct.

"'To my master, the most powerful sorcerer to have ever lived, and will ever live, in this world.

Your plan is, as always, full of brilliance, like a sea of blazing stars. It is a product of a supreme intellect, incomprehensible to us mortals as Latin is to ants. Its grandeur leaves—'"

"You may skip this part, Bella," Voldemort said.

"As you wish, my Lord." She put away the first two pages and continued reading. "'We will be meeting at 4:30 pm in the Department of Mysteries, to teach Potter a lesson he will not forget. Your most impudent opponent will not be able to escape. Your—'"

"Moving on."

She once again turned a few pages over, finally continuing with the last sheet.

"'I humbly remind you of the need for secrecy, although it is, of course, laughable that such a reminder is needed for an intellect as sharp as yours. Please burn this letter after reading it, for the enemy has ears in the most unexpected places.

Your most loyal servant, Silvermane'"

"Whose code name is that, Bella?" Voldemort asked, his gaze burning into her mismatched, and slightly displaced, eyes.

"My Lord, it is Lucius Malfoy. But, if I may be so bold—" Bellatrix' voice stumbled and she was looking distinctly confused.

"That is quite correct, my dear," Voldemort cut her off. "I tested you, for I need you to remember them all for tonight's mission."

"Yes, yes, my Lord, I did not mean to presume—"

"You better not. I have gone further in the Arts of the Mind than any have dared, and my memory is without flaw," he threatened. "However, do well in this mission and I may overlook your impudence. The Dark Lord shows mercy to his most devoted followers, after all." _Admittedly, those code names are rather stupid. If intercepted, the first line already gives the letter's destination away._ He waved his wand, causing the pages to fly into the fire, instantly burning to a crisp.

"I shall not fail you, my Lord!" Bellatrix exclaimed although the effect was slightly ruined by a bit of drool on her left cheek.

* * *

"I _failed_?!" one of the Slytherins cried out, gathering irritated looks from the other students in the fourth-year's Ancient Runes class. He was holding his latest essay, a **T** clearly visible.

 _Michael Harper, isn't it? He looks quite unhappy._

Luna watched out of the corner of her eye, while still pretending to look dreamily ahead. She had dropped hers into her bag as soon as she got it, not wanting to draw any attention. While the bullying had gotten better after she publicly made friends with Harry, she did not want to provoke the other girls. _At least not now, I may need the distraction in the future._

Their teacher, Professor Babbage, was handing out the last essays and made her way to the front. She was looking at the class expectantly, waiting for them to calm down.

Michael continued loudly complaining to everyone who would listen (and many who did not), while the rest were involved in numerous other discussions. Luna could make out her neighbour Anne Benton, a Ravenclaw girl who used to tease her endlessly, comparing the advantages of European and traditional Chinese cosmetic charms.

After a few minutes, Babbage finally gave up and flicked her wand, causing a loud bang.

In the first row, a boy frantically turned back around, only to topple his chair in the process. Harper stopped in the middle of a sentence, awkwardly closing his mouth and sitting down. Anne jerked around, which Luna used to tip her ink over with a silent _Wingardium Leviosa_ , ruining all her notes in the process. _Revenge, sweet revenge._

Finally, after shooting Harper a disapproving look, sending the boy who fell down to the infirmary, and vanishing the ink on Anne's desk (together with her notes), Babbage managed to gain a modicum of control.

"Good morning, class!" she greeted them cheerfully, an act Luna did not buy for a second.

"...good morning, Professor Babbage...," responded an entirely uninspired chorus of voices.

"As you can see, your latest essays have been marked. I do hope you are happy with your grades and continue to work diligently on your studies! Now, it seems that Mr Harper is having a slight misunderstanding, so I think we could all learn a lot from going through his mistake together."

 _Is she actually so naive as to think we can learn something from that? Or does she only want to publicly humiliate Michael for disturbing his class?_ Luna wondered. _Both, probably._

"So, this was the script you had to research," Babbage waved her wand, conjuring a string of burning letters, Norse runes to be precise, made out of flame.

"Who can tell me what the interaction between Sōwilō and Isaz means?" Pointing her wand at the respective letters, Babbage looked expectantly at the students.

Silence filled the classroom. The people in the front row looked increasingly uncomfortable, although Luna could not decide whether that was due to the Professor's wide smile, which _had_ to be feigned, or the hot flames just a few feet away. _We have chalkboards for a reason, don't we?_

After a while, Babbage turned towards Luna.

"Ms Lovegood, do you have an idea?" Babbage asked. _Again with the smile! This is getting ridiculous._

Luna thought for a second. _Obviously we have conflux of positive and negative mana, requiring a band-limiter like Golpalott's. More precisely, the chi-squared density is quadratic, which means we only have to apply the first-order correction. But saying that would blow up my public image faster than this spell would without a limiter, so what to say..._

"Oh, the line thingy has lots of fliffily Winklyborks, and the wavy one is full of trombarding Rattlewees." Luna started, looking dreamily towards the ceiling. "And then you have lots of Winklywees swirling around, which is not good at all."

To her credit, Babbage's smile never wavered. "And why would that be?"

 _And now for the kill._ "You see, when a Winklybork and a Rattlewee love each other very much—"

"Thank you!" Babbage interrupted hastily. "I think we all got the idea. Right, class?"

Luna smiled serenely, pretending not to notice the looks sent her way.

"Right," the Professor continued. "Now, as I believe Ms Lovegood was saying, we have positive and negative energy in this spell. So what do we always need? Ms Benton?"

"Uhm ... Golpalott's limiter?"

"Precisely! As anyone who has so much as looked at a textbook knows, a bipolar energy _always_ requires a limiter. Else it will explode faster than you can say exponential breakdown! And if I see anyone forgetting to include it in their essays, such as young Mr Harper here, I will mark it most severely—you are endangering yourself and the people around you should you ever attempt such a spell! Now, any questions?"

Michael raised his hand, scowling. "But Professor, isn't it possible that _some_ spell functions without the limiter? Just hypothetically? I mean, there are so many combinations, there's got to be one, right?"

"No! No, no, no! Two points from Slytherin. I'm sorry, Mr Harper, but that is just a stupid question. I would expect my niece to know better by now—and she is four, Merlin! Even the headmaster hasn't seen such a spell, and Albus is always travelling and researching the most arcane of magicks furiously."

* * *

Dumbledore was sitting in his office, contentedly sucking on a lemon drop. His spy amongst the Death Eaters, Severus Snape, had managed to get a copy of a secret message sent to Voldemort's headquarters.

His phoenix cawed, and Dumbledore suddenly felt a burst of hot flame engulf his hand. He quickly withdrew it, suppressing a curse. _At some point my hand will just be scorched black. That would look quite embarrassing!_

"Ahh, but I can tell everyone that was just a Dark curse—no one would question that!" The headmaster chuckled good-naturedly at the complete lack of disbelief that was so widespread across wizards.

Fawkes looked at him amusedly.

"I said that out loud, did I not?" Still rubbing his hand, he turned to look at the letter.

"'To my master, the most powerful sorcerer to have ever lived, and will ever live, in this world.' Why would this letter be delivered to Tom's residence, when it is so obviously addressed to me personally?" Dumbledore wondered aloud.

He heard a snort from one of the portraits. Also, Fawkes was emitting bursts of flame in what could only be called uproarious laughter.

"Calm down, you comedians." Dumbledore was a bit irked at this blatant display of disrespect. "At least some of it is true!"

His phoenix fell off and rolled around the floor.

"Cut the theatrics!" the headmaster huffed. "Now, where was I? 'Your plan is, as always, full of brilliance,'—true, true—'like a sea of ...'"

He continued to read the letter aloud, feeling quite appreciative of the slightly flattering, but nonetheless factual description of himself. His enjoyment was only slightly diminished by Phineas Nigellus Black repeatedly hitting his head against his portrait in a most undignified fashion.

Finally, he arrived at the end. "'Your most loyal servant, Silvermane'—That is most curious indeed, I cannot quite place which one of mine calls himself Silvermane."

Dumbledore took another lemon drop, to help him think.

"Oh, it must be Severus, he was always quite proud of his hair. But why would he intercept a letter from himself? Maybe his intellect is not as sharp as it once was."

"Pot, meet kettle," Black muttered under his breath, but Dumbledore ignored him with the ease of long practice.

"Now, what was the letter saying again?" He turned back a few pages. " _... teach Potter a lesson he will not forget ..._ Severus must be referring to remedial potion lessons! He _is_ always complaining about Harry's performance. Still, why would he hold them at the ministry? That part makes little sense to me."

Meanwhile, Fawkes had stopped rolling on the floor and was now imperiously prancing across his desk. The headmaster paid him little notice and walked to his window, hoping the view would inspire him.

"Maybe he is concerned about privacy?" He nodded to himself. "Yes, that has to be it. Taking remedial lessons would be quite embarrassing to Harry and Severus is trying to avoid making that widely known." Dumbledore felt quite proud, and decided to reward himself with another lemon drop. "Oh, and that is also why he wants me to burn the letter! Everything makes perfect sense."

He then turned around, only to see that his desk had been set on fire.

"Fawkes!" He took a deep breath. "How very accommodating of you to set it aflame, I was just about to do that myself."

Dumbledore gave the phoenix his well-practised grandfatherly smile, trying his best to annoy Fawkes by feigning indifference. His only answer was a haughty sigh, but all the fire vanished in an instant, leaving the smoking remains of his letter behind. _Some of Minerva's reports probably are in there too. Alas, I read them only rarely, regardless._

"If I will be at the ministry for these remedial potion lessons, I might as well meet with Cornelius. Maybe he will finally accept Tom's return," he mused. "Fawkes, could you take a letter for me? Do not look at me like that—you just burned a stack of Minerva's reports, and you know how important those are."

He wrote the letter and gave it to Fawkes, who vanished in a burst of flames.

Ten minutes later, he was receiving a call on the Floo.

"Hello? Albus, are you there?" the distinct voice of the current Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, called out.

"Cornelius, what a pleasant surprise! What can I help you with on this splendid evening?" Albus walked to his fireplace, his eyes twinkling merrily.

"Look Albus, I know we are not on the best of terms right now ... " Dumbledore could just make out Black suppressing a snort. " ... but why in Merlin's name are you sending your phoenix to deliver a steaming pile of ashes to my desk?!"

 _Oh right, I forgot phoenixes do that. There is a reason they have never replaced post owls and it has little to do with their manners._ "My apologies, Minister. It seems my familiar has a crude sense of humour. Now, I wanted to talk to you this evening if your busy schedule allows for that?"

"See that it does not happen again! And do you even realise that I'd arrest you right now, if I could?!"

 _The reason I have to lock my own office and have Fawkes take me whenever I go outside._ "Most certainly! Alas, you cannot—so let us meet at seven, if that is fine by you?"

"Fine," Fudge grumbled. "But you better believe my extremely talented and very capable aurors will be there as well!"

"Splendid! I already am looking forward to it." Dumbledore once again gave his best grandfatherly smile, complete with twinkling eyes. It did not have the desired effect, however, as Fudge just huffed and closed the call.

* * *

"Luna, you have to help us!" Ginny found her after her lesson. "Harry needs to talk to someone, but only Umbridge's floo isn't monitored, we've got to break into her office!"

 _What a monumentally stupid idea. Not that it would be at all difficult, of course,_ Luna thought to herself. _But I guess Harry has a plan, and those Gryffindors are hopeless without my help._ "So very exciting! I always wanted to study the blibbering Humdinger she must keep in there."

She leaned in and dropped her voice conspiratorially. "You know, I believe the Rotfang conspiracy has already infiltrated them and placed a few deep-cover spies."

"Maybe another time," Ginny continued, unperturbed. "We need to create a distraction, so that Harry can get in there."

"Sure, why not?" _It's not like I had anything important to do today, anyways._

* * *

"And this is why you never cross the Inquisitorial Squad!" Draco sneered at Luna, Ginny, Ron and Neville, who were currently sitting gagged and with their hands tied up behind their backs on the floor in Umbridge's office. They were being guarded by the members of the Inquisitorial Squad, consisting of Draco Malfoy, his two goons, Pansy Parkinson, Millicent Bulstrode and a two other Slytherins Luna did not recognise.

"I can't believe Loony actually got her head out of the clouds long enough for that," squealed Pansy, giggling inappropriately.

Luna did not dignify this with a response, not that the gag would have let her. _Those incompetents didn't search us properly, they even missed my second wand! And that's the obvious one, only there to provide cover for my third, fourth and fifth._ Silently laughing at their stupidity, she inconspicuously touched the wand hidden in her back pocket and levitated one of her hairpins down to her bound hands. They were all sharpened, as usual. _You never know when you might want to cut something. Or someone._ This was all happening behind her back, so the Slytherins watching her did not have a clue what was going on.

"Oh, Blood has a way of showing, Pansy," snarled Draco. "Isn't that right, Weasley? Your despicable family of blood-traitors would know all about it."

While Ginny trashed around angrily (and uselessly) and Ron looked ready to kill (and also quite useless), Luna had managed to weaken the ropes enough that a strong pull would get her hands free. Now she was concentrating on lifting some of Umbridge's heavier porcelain over Draco's head, who was still trying his best to insult them. _No one ever looks upwards. It's embarrassing, really._

"But Longbottom as well? I'd have expected more out of him. I mean, of course, he's a failure and can't do any magic—"

"Except potting plants, you mean!" interjected Pansy, loudly laughing at her own joke.

"Still, the Longbottoms are old and well-respected, some of that should have trickled down is all I'm saying."

"Focus, Draco—we aren't here for fun," grunted Millicent.

"Bah, what are you afraid of? It's not like the sky will suddenly decide to fall down on our—"

Sadly, Luna was not yet ready to drop the plates on his head and so had to let this golden opportunity pass.

"—heads. We could go to the common room, finish our Potions homework, and they'd still be here afterwards!"

"If you say so," said Millicent, sounding entirely unconvinced. _Though which part she has problems with, I'm not sure._

Finally, Luna was ready—and with a loud crash, Draco went down, together with the remains of several of Umbrigde's former decorations. _That must have hurt,_ Luna noted dispassionately.

She wasted no time and brought up her wand, snapping the ropes which were holding her hands in the process. Shooting a silent stunning spell to the girl on the right, she immediately followed with an overpowered _Expelliarmus_ , knocking the boy next to her into a wall. _Take out the unknowns first, you never know how capable they are._

Her moment of surprise was quickly wearing off, however. Millicent was the first to regain her bearings, shooting a sickly brown curse into her direction. Quickly Luna rolled out of its way, recognising it as a vomit-inducing spell. In one smooth motion, she took out her gag and levelled her wand at Millicent.

" _Ossifrango!_ " she shouted. But the girl swiftly sidestepped the bone-shattering curse, causing it to hit Pansy instead. She started screaming and dropped her wand in favour of clutching her sides.

Not stopping to look, Millicent advanced on Luna, sending a flurry of minor hexes and jinxes her way. Luna answered with a quick _Protego_ , deflecting them. Still, she was on the ground against an opponent who would not give her the time to get up. Her shield was already battered, it would break any moment now. Lowering her wand, Luna softly closed her eyes.

"Giving up already, Loony?" taunted Millicent. "Not much of a fighter, are we?"

 _Don't taunt your opponent while they are still alive, stupid. Typical rookie mistake._ Just before her shield was about to fail, Luna brought her wand up sharply.

"Lumos Maxima!" she shouted, putting all her energy into the spell. A blinding light erupted from her wand, causing her to flinch even through closed eyelids. She cancelled the spell right away, not wanting to waste any energy. Getting up to her feet while Millicent was still blinking furiously, she once again made use of her silent stunner. _No use in giving my position away._ Finally, the Slytherin girl went down and Luna took a moment to look over the scene.

Neville, Ron and Ginny were still on the ground, rolling around aimlessly. They had been hit with the brunt of the _Lumos_ and would be practically blind for a while. Pansy was also on the ground, having fallen down at some point. She was quietly weeping and rocking back and forth, likely because of her broken ribs. _That one won't be a problem._ More worryingly, Crabbe and Goyle were finally breaking out of their stupor and pointed their wands at her.

"This fancy wand-waving won't save you, stupid girl." grunted one of them. (Luna could never tell which one was which, they were just so _unimportant_.)

"That's right, we're not that easy!" the other one added. They both cast shielding charms and cautiously walked towards her. " _Confringo!_ "

Luna dodged the hex easily. It hit one of the shelves behind her, causing some shards to hit her painfully in the back. She tried a bone-shattering curse, but Crabbe (or Goyle) just let it crash into his shield, taking the hit with a grunt. Another blasting curse was sent her way, demolishing Umbridge's desk.

 _I'm in trouble,_ Luna realised. _Together they're stronger than me, and quick thinking won't help me—they're used to fighting more intelligent opponents. After all, they do it all the time._

"Starting to get it, aren't you? _Bombarda_ ," the left one said. _Let's just call him Crabbe._

She took another step back, twisting out of the way of that curse. It clipped one of the dirigle plums she wore as earrings, tearing it off painfully. She flinched involuntarily, just as the explosion hit her, making her stumble to the right. Luna quickly went through her options. _The flash-trick won't work again, even they aren't that dumb. Overpowering them is right out. The other three can't help me, they're still tied up._ She experimentally fired a stunner at Goyle, but it just bounced off his shield and hit Ron instead.

 _Having an idea would be excellent, right about now._ She narrowly avoided another hex. _No? Oh, come on!_

Seeing the resigned look on her face, Crabbe started grinning victoriously. _He doesn't, however, stop his assault to gloat about whatever. See, Millicent, it's not that difficult._

They were now closing in. A couple of feet more and she would be up against the wall, with no possibility of escape. And they knew, going by the smug looks they were giving her. Goyle raised his wand once more—

Finally, Luna had enough and whispered, " _Imperio._ " The spell cut through their shields like butter, hitting a gobsmacked Crabbe square in the chest. Suddenly, she could feel her will intruding into his mind, easily suppressing the meagre resistance it encountered.

 _Attack him,_ she commanded immediately, watching as Crabbe headbutted Goyle with all his power. Both fell to the ground, unconscious.

Silence. _Well, except for Pansy's whining._ Luna fixed her with a quick _Stupefy_ and then went to Neville and Ginny. Both looked at her with equally disbelieving stares, although Neville was grinning from ear to ear. Ron was slumped down beside them, her stunning spell still taking its toll. She carelessly waved her wand and mumbled, " _Accio Gags_."

Now free to speak, Neville immediately blurted out, "That was sick, Luna! You didn't even break a sweat. No wonder you were kicking my ass in the DA!"

"No, that was _sick_ ," Ginny sputtered. "Are you out of your mind?! You used an unforgivable, those will land you in Askaban!"

Sighting, Luna picked up their wands from Draco, who was still lying under the pile that knocked him out. "Are you going to turn me in, Ginny?" she wondered.

"I should! Those spells are banned for a reason," Ginny answered defiantly.

 _Apparently she is forgetting which one of us is holding her wand._ Luna turned to Neville. "Sorry, but I can't leave any witnesses. _Obliviate._ "

"Are you crazy?!" Ginny screamed. "Do you even know how to cast this spell?"

 _How do you think I learned the Imperius, silly? You can't just go around practising on Mrs Norris, even if it helps getting started._ But Luna was not nearly foolish enough to admit her crimes out loud, even if she would be the only one remembering the conversations in a few moments. " _Obliviate_ ," she answered instead.

 _Now, let's just come up with a crazy story that has us winning while both outnumbered and outclassed, using nothing more than school-yard jinxes. It does not even have to be plausible. Wizards will believe anything, no matter how far-fetched._

After obliviating all of them and implanting the fabricated memories, Luna threw Pansy out of a window, as a plausible reason for her broken bones. (In the memories she jumped out voluntarily, fearing a snake conjured by Draco.) For good measure, she had Goyle remember picking up her wand and trying to cast the Imperius curse, to give her an alibi in case someone cast _Priori Incantatem_ on it.

Luna sighed, regretting the necessity of her current activities. _Cleaning up witnesses is always such a bother._

* * *

Voldemort was annoyed. He was currently searching through Lucius' private library, trying to find a spell he could use to finally defeat Dumbledore once and for all. _The 'once' part would already be an improvement. Especially considering he might try to foil my plan. I must have the prophecy, failure is not an option today._

The old man was becoming more senile every day, but that made his magic more dangerous as far as Voldemort was concerned. After all, only fools would dare to mess around with ancient magicks without understanding their principles fully.

And Dumbledore always seemed to have the right spell at hand, having forgotten more about magic than others learned in the lifetimes. _He probably forgot the parts that made the spells safe!_ Voldemort complained to himself. _It's not fair. How am I supposed to compete with this?_

Finally, he hit upon a spell that sounded useful. _'Impetus glaci' Crystallises the air around the caster and shoots a few hundred shards of ice towards the target.' Well, that might come in handy, provided I am able to increase its power by an order of magnitude or two._ He turned the page to look at the arithmantic expansion. _'Isaz, þurisaz, Raidō, Ehwaz'—wait, Ehwaz?! What's that doing in here?_

Voldemort tried to remember his Ancient Runes lessons. And failed miserably, as they were half a century ago and he died twice since then.

 _I think it's a limiter. Those are always about throwing in something nonsensical, just to make the spell less powerful. It probably was designed by some ice cream merchant, and whoever weaponised it was an amateur._

He shrugged. _Theory was never my forte anyway. Let's just try it without Ehwaz._ He spent a few minutes figuring out the wand movements, until he finally decided to simply cut the final wiggle out. _What's the worst that could happen?_

He positioned himself in the centre of the room, and then decisively moved his wand in the modified pattern. " _Impetus glaci!_ " he called out.

Nothing happened. Voldemort looked around in confusion—usually, things tended to go either quite well or catastrophically badly when experimenting with magic. _Ah, maybe the spell was incomplete,_ he thought.

At least until he looked down on his wand, where a sizzling black sphere was slowly getting bigger.

 _Uh, oh..._

Quickly, and with reflexes trained from decades of doing experimental spell crafting, he darted to the door and yanked it open. One of his newer recruits—he could never remember their names—was currently walking past, and Voldemort shoved his wand into the boy's hands.

"Hold onto that for a moment! And run!" he commanded, not bothering to wait for a response. He slammed the door shut and then jumped away, assuming a protective position on the ground.

This was not a moment too early, as suddenly a huge explosion shook the manor to its foundations. Afterwards, there was a moment of silence, quickly disturbed by the sounds of breaking glass. Also, the door was now sporting a rather large hole.

Shaking his head to get rid of the ringing, he carefully took a few steps outside into the corridor. It was completely devastated, with nothing remaining but the sturdy stone walls. They were looking quite nice, in fact, having been burned sparkling clean.

Eventually, he spotted his wand lying on the floor, although no signs of its temporary holder could be found. _Maybe he dropped it and ran away,_ Voldemort guessed, not really caring. _Well. This is embarrassing. I sure hope no one is here to find out._

With the ringing now starting to recede, Voldemort could make out steps coming his way. He sighed, _No such luck, it seems._

Another two of his recruits came running around the corner, only to promptly stop as they recognised their lord. One was not quite prepared for that and fell flat on his face. The other stared blankly for a few seconds, then seemed to catch himself and knelt down on the ground. "My lord, we—"

"I have no time for pleasantries!" Voldemort interrupted him. _And also I have no clue how to explain this adequately._ "Report."

"Uhm...," the one on the right said intelligently. Meanwhile, the other had managed to get up, and also assumed a kneeling position.

"We were just looking for Trevor, my Lord," the other one continued. "Then everything just went 'Bang!', so we came to investigate."

"Naturally."

"Could you hear it, too? It was pretty scary," the first one added.

 _Sigh. Why can't I have more intelligent minions._ "My hearing is perfectly fine," Voldemort drawled. _At least it was a few minutes ago._ "I have gone further in the Mastery of Senses than any have dared."

"Yes, my Lord, of course!" the first one grovelled.

"What happened down here?" the other asked. "My Lord?" he quickly added.

"There was ...," Voldemort began. He then paused, looking away. "Uhhh—," he continued, making full use of his extensive vocabulary. "—... an attack."

"An attack?!"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Are you questioning me?!" Voldemort let a threatening undertone creep into his voice.

"No, no, of course not, my Lord!"

"Actually, you kind of were." his partner added helpfully, only to shrink under the two withering glares sent his way.

"You fools have wasted enough of my time," Voldemort declared. "Warn the others not to come near this section, I will handle it _personally_. Is that understood?" After receiving two acknowledgements, he turned to leave. "Oh, one other thing. Your friend may have died in the attack."

"He died?! My Lord?"

"Yes, yes. Very heroically. Now move along." He made a shushing motion with his hand and went back to his former study.

Surveying the damage, he let out a heavy sigh. The floor was littered with debris, shards of the door were lying all over the room, and a few dozen vases had fallen from their stands and shattered. _Lucius will be quite displeased with the destruction of his property._ He swung his wand in a wide arc. " _Reparo._ "

A single vase fixed itself, jumping back onto its drawer.

Voldemort grumbled. _More is always more._ " _Reparo_ ," he paused for a second. "... _Maximus_!"

12


	2. Safety Margins

"Hey guys," Harry cheerfully greeted Luna and the others. "How the Hippogriff did you manage to escape?"

Hermione was standing beside him, both looking like they had just tried to race the Hogwarts Express—and won. Harry was sporting a huge smile, looking great despite his robes being littered with cuts.

"Oi, mate! We gave them a taste of the DA, didn't we Neville?" Ron said, smugly.

"It was awesome!" Neville was grinning widely. "First Ginny managed to kick Malfoy, and Ron punched Crabbe right in the face."

"Uh, wasn't that Goyle?"

"Could be."

"What happened then?" Harry asked.

"Neville grabbed our wands, and it was just jinxes everywhere," Ginny said. "I nailed a few Bat-Bogeys, that'll teach them not stick their noses where they don't belong! You were terrific Luna, those stunners really hit the mark!"

 _A quick_ Obliviate _and we're best friends again. The wonders of magic never cease._

"Those weren't stunners, silly. But can you believe that Pansy actually jumped out of the window?" laughed Ron.

"They totally were, you prat. Anyways," continued Ginny. "We went to search for you. What's your story?"

"We were just dealing with Umbridge," Harry shrugged. "Centaurs helped us."

" _Professor_ Umbridge, Harry!" admonished Hermione.

"Not anymore, I bet!" Harry smirked. "She had it coming, as well. Remember when she tried to dose me with Veritaserum?"

This was news to Luna. "What happened? Did you have the antidote on you?" _I know I do, but that's a surprising amount of planning for a Gryffindor._ Her respect for Harry rose a few notches.

"Eh, just poured it on some flower. Anyways, Sirius is still in the Ministry,—" _Sure he is._ "—we have to bail him out. Any ideas on how we get there?"

Luna walked a few feet to the nearest tree and pretended to study it with interest. _I know I usually trust Harry, but this doesn't make any sense. It would only be a waste of time._ The others did not look very hopeful. Ron was currently scratching his head, while Hermione was busy staring a hole in the ground. _Now comes the part where I suggest some crazy idea. Then they dismiss it, can't think of anything else, and I'll be in the restricted section by five._

 _However, I have to be careful, it must be so insane that there's no chance they'd go for it._ She circled the tree, noticing some beast's bite mark in the bark. An idea formed in her head. _It's perfect._

"Neptune is rising tonight," she called out in her dreamy voice. Well, her normal voice.

Hermione threw her a look. "So what?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?"

"No! What do you mean?"

"Death Eaters, Hermione. Death."

"You don't make any sense!"

Seeing Hermione on the verge of a breakdown, Luna decided to have mercy on her.

"We could ride the Thestrals." She smiled to herself. _Mounting a horde of flesh-eating monsters of death and flying across the country to London? A bit out there, but at least there is no way they're going to take it seriously._

Harry snapped around, giving her a thankful look. "Thestrals! Of course, why didn't I think of that? You're awesome, Luna!"

Her smile was starting to feel strained. _Don't you dare._

"You know, that could actually work," mumbled Hermione, contemplating.

 _Nooo!_

* * *

Dumbledore was standing at his window, taking in the beautiful Scottish landscape. The towers of Hogwarts stood majestically over their surroundings. The Forbidden Forest looked entirely peaceful, belying the hordes of creatures that would love to eat his students for dinner. Speaking of those, a small person was just now running away from it. _Should have listened to their welcome speech,_ he admonished mentally. _Still, no harm was done._ On the other side, he could see the lake, where a group of first-years were currently playing with the Giant Squid. _Maybe calling it 'playing' is stretching the term a bit._

Suddenly, his quiet contemplation was interrupted by the sounds of distant screams, as a student fell down one of Hogwarts' many towers. That was not surprising in itself—students falling down a couple of stories was alarmingly commonplace, especially since the introduction of the moving staircases—but dropping out of a window was a bit more unusual. _Had they been thrown out deliberately?_

"Maybe someone took the phrase 'I trust you about as far as I can throw you' to the test?" he chuckled.

Dumbledore walked back to his desk, ignoring both Black's groan and Fawkes' pitying look. _Still, I see no reason to become involved. Broken bones are just a minor nuisance, and surely someone will take them to the hospital wing in time._ He took another one of his lemon drops, studying it for a few seconds until popping it slowly in his mouth, savouring every moment of fizzling sourly goodness. _Actually, Fawkes would be perfectly capable—and I would not have to lift my wand an inch._

He tried to look suitably concerned. "Fawkes?"

His phoenix inclined his head.

"There is a student grievously injured. I need you to take them to Madam Pomfrey right now," Dumbledore said, alarmed. "They could die at any moment!"

Fawkes looked at him incredulously and then turned pointedly to his glass full of sherbet lemons, one of which he was currently noisily sucking on.

"Oh fine, be like that," grumbled Dumbledore.

"I am clueless how you get anything done, Headmaster," commented Black. "Grindlewald must have stolen your sweets to get you to take out the big spells, did he not?"

Dumbledore put an arm protectively around his glass, then quickly withdrew it once he realised what he was doing. "I confronted him as soon as he made his intentions clear. Then we traded spells for hours, until I finally managed to overpower him with my magic." He paused and then added, defensively, "That is how it happened."

"Why is your phoenix laughing?" asked Black, furrowing his eyebrows.

"He took a while to understand my joke from earlier?" tried Dumbledore.

"If I have learned one thing hanging on this wall, your phoenix does _not_ laugh at your jokes."

"Yes, he quite lacks a sense of humour."

"Or has standards. And you are avoiding my point."

Dumbledore sighed. "Can you keep a secret?"

"I am a portrait glued to the wall in your office, if that fact has escaped your notice."

"Phineas."

"Fine, I promise to keep your oh-so-important secret."

Dumbledore took a deep breath and began his story.

"Most people see me as an old, intelligent, immensely powerful wizard. They think I wield ancient magicks of unspeakable might."

Dumbledore smiled sadly.

"Alas, the reality is that I am not. A powerful wizard, I mean—I am not lacking in the intelligence department," he added modestly. "But in terms of spells, I am limited to some low-powered charms."

"If that were so," Black said, raising a single eyebrow. "then how _did_ you manage to defeat Grindelwald? Or discover the twelve uses for dragon blood? Or confront Voldemort countless times?"

"Oh, research I can do just fine. Nicholas did all the heavy lifting on that, I just developed the formulae. For the other things—as much as it pains me to admit it—it was all Fawkes."

"What?!"

"Do you know that phoenixes can teleport themselves and others instantly, ignoring most wards? That their tears are the most potent healing potion in existence? That they—no need to look so smug, Fawkes—can throw gigantic fireballs? That their song physically hurts any dark wizard? Also, they are practically invulnerable."

"But still, you could hardly—"

"Think, Phineas!" interrupted Dumbledore. "You were here when Harry told us how he defeated the Basilisk. Who helped him down in Slytherin's chamber? Not me, certainly.

"Last year, when Harry was watching Tom's rebirth, did I have Fawkes take me and duelled him while he was at his weakest? No! I sent Fawkes in there alone, knowing I would only slow him down.

"Even last month, when Cornelius tried to arrest me in this very office. Did I fight his aurors? Most assuredly not! After all, they are professionals. I had Fawkes take me out of here right away, and came back later that night to close the door. With a key, mind you, not magic."

Dumbledore slumped down, having finally revealed his life's greatest lie.

Black was stunned. "How—" ... "Why—" ... "Is this actually true?"

"Yes, Phineas, it is," Dumbledore said gravely.

Black stared at him for a long moment. Then he started cracking up. "Haha, you actually got me for a second! Nice one!"

"No—," began Dumbledore.

"And the setup, as well!" Black was now gasping for air. "How can you stay serious for so long?"

"I was serious!"

"Yes, sure, and Flamel hides his stone in Myrtle's bathroom because Gringotts is not safe enough!" chuckled Black.

"Actually—"

"I must tell this to my great-grandson, it will cheer Sirius right up! See you!"

"Wait! You promised—," Dumbledore protested weakly, but he could only look on helplessly as Black walked out of the portrait to Grimauld Drive, spilling his secret for the world to hear.

* * *

 _Maybe I could replace Ehwaz with Mannaz? They sound similar enough,_ Voldemort thought, once again working on his spell. _If Ehwaz is the wiggle at the end, I have to instead do an upwards flick, a diagonal cross and a downwards flick to get Mannaz. Or is that a circle?_ He shook his head. _No sense fretting over that._ Raising his wand, he intoned, " _Impetus glaci_."

Nothing happened. Voldemort eyed the empty room before him suspiciously, not keen on repeating his earlier performance. He looked down, scowling. _There is no mysterious, exploding sphere attached to my wand. So far, so good._

It was eerily quiet. Nothing seemed to be out of order, but that did little to calm his suspicions. _That magic has to have gone somewhere!_

Suddenly someone tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, what is going—"

Voldemort let out a high-pitched shriek, but then his combat reflexes kicked in. Spinning around, he fired off a blasting curse and a blood-freezing charm in one swift motion. These were probably overkill, but he cared little for such things. _More is, after all, always more._

However, instead of the exceptionally stupid recruit or over-eager house-elf he was expecting, his spells flew towards an ice-golem, who was looking at him curiously.

Both spells hit before either of them had time to react, one landing on its shoulder, the other clipping its leg. However, they were not proving effective and only created a few sparks.

"Do not attack me, you fool!" exclaimed the golem. "I am you after all."

Voldemort raised an almost invisible, silvery shield. "You sure don't look the part! Explain yourself!"

"I remember trying to improve the ' _Impetus glaci_ ' spell, right before this. I swapped the rune, and after casting it I suddenly found myself in this body."

Voldemort narrowed his eyes. Or at least he would, had his rebirthing ritual left him with narrowable eyeslits. "If you are really what you pretend to be, tell me how many points Slytherin had in my first year."

"This is ridiculous! That was more than fifty years ago, I cannot even remember how many animals I sacrificed that year!"

"Neither can I," admitted Voldemort. "So, you are really me. Or at least, you were."

"I still am."

"Semantics. How did this happen?"

The golem frowned. "I do not remember the precise meaning of Ehwaz, but it's being used for Inferii, correct?"

"Yes. Probably. That explains the golem part. But Inferii are hardly great conversationalists, by any stretch."

"So where is the intelligence coming from?"

A few moments passed, until they both looked at each other, having come to the same conclusion.

"The—"

"—Horcruxes."

"Why?!" raged Voldemort. (The real one.) He slashed his wand angrily, exploding a display of expensive looking vases. "My soul is more fragile than a summoning circle made out of twigs! I didn't even kill anyone this time!"

"Well, there was this recruit...," pointed the golem out.

"Oh, you are right, there was," Voldemort said, his rage abating somewhat. "Still, it was an accident."

"You pushed your wand, which was about to explode, into his hands and told him to run."

"Details," dismissed Voldemort, waving his hand. "In any case, having an additional Horcrux is a good thing. More is always more."

"True. But what are we going to do about me?"

"Let us see." Voldemort walked over to his golem, casting a number of diagnostic spells. "You appear to be immune to cold and heat. No digestive tract, so probably no need to eat. There is a magic core, but it is not compatible with wands."

He circled around, while the golem eyed him suspiciously.

" _Confringo. Diffindo. Inanis._ Highly resistant to physical magic. _Adflictus._ —"

"Ouch!"

"—Susceptible to pain-based curses. _Obliviate. Imperio._ Immune against mind-affecting spells."

"Are you quite done?!" growled the golem.

"I am."

It took a deep breath. "So what are we going to do? I have to improve my wandless magic first, of course, but I can do some of the research afterwards. I am definitely joining you in your next fight against the old fool, the prophecy is too important to lose."

"Ludicrous. You are one of my Horcruxes—and I will hide you until I have a need of you."

"We were the same person just five minutes ago!"

"So? We did the same to the diary. Do you think it appreciates being imprisoned in a book?"

"I _am_ starting to regret that decision."

"Good for you."

"At least put me in some kind of library, where I can work on new spells!"

"I was thinking north pole, to be frank."

"What?! Are you—"

"No one will search for you there, and you will blend in perfectly."

"Don't you—"

" _Portus_ ," cast Voldemort, sending his golem away. _One problem dealt with._

His eyes fell on a clock, which has miraculously withstood his earlier 'experiments'. _What time did Lucius say in that letter?_

Voldemort tapped his wand against the wall, annoyed. _Why, for the love of Merlin, are we burning those? It was half past, but what hour?_

 _Six maybe? Or seven? Well, seven_ is _my favourite number. Yes, it was definitely half past seven. I will make sure to be at the ministry by then, Lucius would fail miserably on his own._

* * *

Luna was mentally recounting all her spells capable of letting her survive a drop of a few hundred yards. It was a short list. _I'll definitely look this up if I'm ever in the library again_ , she promised to herself. _Considering the number of people I've thrown out of windows, I really should've done that already._

Her Thestral, which she lovingly referred to as 'Certain Death', was not yet showing a desire to eat her alive, nor did he try to shake her off. Still, Luna was not a trusting person. _He's just biding his time. Maybe he's trying to figure out whether we'd taste better after being scared to death from the fall, or if he should just take a bite right now._

Trying to distract herself from Certain Death below, she looked at the others. Neville was sitting in front of her. He was trying to stay collected, but the nervous looks he was sending downwards every now and then betrayed him. Ron and Ginny were on the Thestral to her right, casually bickering about something. _They play Quidditch after all. The thought of dying horribly in a crash is doubtlessly exciting to them._

Their casual disregard of the mortal peril they were in was even more stunning, considering that neither of them could even see the Thestral under them.

Leading the party were Harry and Hermione. The latter looked ready to puke but managed to keep it together. Of course, Harry was taking to this like a dryad to the forest, flying confidently ahead. Were it not for Hermione, he would likely be doing barrel rolls right now. _Gryffindors._

Luna narrowed her eyes. They were having a whispered conversation, banking on the wind to wash out any sounds. _Not on my watch._ Luna was curious. Careful to not alert Neville, she whispered, " _Sonum Profero_ ".

"—you sure about that, Harry?" Luna could hear Hermione as if she was right next to her.

"Yeah. I can feel him," responded Harry. _Which is totally not creepy, whoever that is. Probably the Thestral._

"What is he thinking?" _Which one of us tastes the best, if I had to guess._

"First he was suspicious—" _You would be too if your potatoes asked you to carry them to the kitchen._ "Like, he was just annoyed, but then he got really furious, you know?" _We're so not going to survive this._

"I don't know, Harry, it doesn't really make sense." _You don't say?!_

"And then the fury just went 'poof', and he felt really smug about something." _Wait, what are you talking about?_

"Maybe Sirius managed to escape? When Voldemort realised it, he was raging—but could be that he then recaptured Sirius?"

"Mhm. I don't like it, Hermione. We have to get him out of there, before Voldemort kills him."

 _Oh, they were talking about Voldemort. Now it makes sense._ Different puzzle pieces flew around in her head, searching for connections. _So that's why Harry was so sure Sirius was at the Ministry, he can read Voldemort's mind._ Luna nodded to herself. _It's still completely implausible, mind you, but they're Gryffindors after all. We might be doing something interesting._

As they did not seem to continue their conversation, Luna cancelled the spell. Ron and Ginny were still quibbling on their Thestral, so she focused once again on her Certain Death, not wanting to be caught unawares.

* * *

Dumbledore was quite upset about his earlier episode. So much so, in fact, that he almost forgot his upcoming meeting with Snape and Harry for the remedial potion lessons. Sighting, he looked at the clock disappointedly. _Although it might be better this way. I would not want to intrude upon Severus and Harry, they could very well use this opportunity to get to know each other._ He popped another lemon drop. _Yes, I will give them an hour still._

Suddenly his fireplace roared to life. "Albus, quick!" came the agitated voice of Madam Pomfrey. "We have a situation over here!"

"Fawkes! Now, if you please." For once, his familiar did not argue. Vanishing in a flash of flame, they reappeared inside the Hospital Wing.

"Poppy," Dumbledore greeted warmly. "Pleasure to meet you, as always."

Pomfrey was currently tending to none other than Dolores Umbridge. _She looks like she was run over by a horde of Centaurs._

He got an admonishing look, although Poppy did not seem very angry. "Well, she was."

 _I said that out loud, didn't I?_

"Yes, you did. They dropped her off at the edge of the forest, presumably after scaring her within an inch of her life." She cast a few diagnostic charms. "Our esteemed _Professor_ Umbridge has yet to say a single intelligible sentence. She's in shock, most likely."

"I see. And there is nothing you can do, Poppy?"

The healer pursed her lips. "Well, theoretically I _do_ know a few spells, but I'm afraid I simply lack the _expertise_. The healers at St. Mungos are much more qualified."

 _How curious, Poppy never had problems dealing with traumata before. It does happen regularly around here, after all. But she must know best what can and cannot be done, I suppose._

Dumbledore looked around. The infirmary was blindingly white as always. More unusually, it was almost empty, with only one other bed being occupied.

"If you are searching for Mr Potter, Albus, you won't find him here. At least not right now, the boy attracts more trouble than a galleon does nifflers," Poppy said, clearly disapproving. "If I'd had to guess, he's probably riding a herd of Hippogriffs, well above any safe altitude."

Dumbledore chuckled, "Don't be so hard on young Harry, Poppy. I know for a fact that, at this moment, he is doing remedial potion lessons with Severus."

"Then there's nothing for me to worry about, Albus. No concerns at all. I'm sure Mr Potter will be _perfectly_ safe in the company of our esteemed potions professor."

"I'm glad we agree," Dumbledore smiled, turning to the other occupied bed, which was standing on the far side of the room. A Slytherin girl was currently lying in there. Her ribs had recently been bandaged, and Albus noted several vials of pain-relief and dreamless sleep potions standing beside the bed. "Who is that unfortunate student over there?"

"That's Ms Parkinson, a fifth-year Slytherin. She is here because she—Merlin knows why—jumped out of a window. Broke almost all of her ribs, of course."

"Yes, I thought I heard screaming some time ago. I do not believe this will be any trouble to you?"

"She'll be up in no time," replied Pomfrey automatically, before his earlier sentence registered. "I'm sorry, what?! You heard a student cry out in pain and didn't think it necessary to leave your office? Are you out of your mind, Albus?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "Now, now, Poppy, you know better than anyone that crying students are par for the course. It is when they fall silent that you need to start worrying."

"Albus, this castle is one big safety hazard! Children get injured on a daily basis and it doesn't trouble you in the slightest! The students here have a choice to fall to their death using a staircase, die from a concussion during this so-called sport, Quidditch, or maybe even drown in the lake!"

"The Giant Squid usually fishes them out, you know that," defended Dumbledore. "And the staff is always trying to protect them."

"Oh, _really_?" asked Pomfrey.

"Of course! Can you name even one teacher that has put students at risk?"

"Quirrell."

"Well, DADA does not count."

"Hagrid then."

Dumbledore paused. "... He was let go by Dolores, was he not?"

"Argh!" exclaimed Pomfrey frustratedly. "At this rate, the students will be fighting Voldemort in the courtyard by next year! And the teachers will stand by, watching."

"Please, do not be ridiculous. Now, I would like to have a few words with young Ms Parkinson, if that would be alright?"

"By all means, go ahead. Just try to keep her away from open windows, just in case she gets any ideas."

"Hey!" a girl's voice sounded. "I'm right here, you know? And I can hear you two just fine." Pansy did not seem amused.

Dumbledore walked over to her, once again all friendly headmaster. "Oh, you must not think bad of Poppy, she is only concerned about your safety." His eyes twinkled. "Even if that concern gets out of hand, sometimes."

Pomfrey shot him a dark look. "I'm not—"

"Moving on," he spoke over her. "What is the last thing you remember?"

"You and Pomfrey painting me as a depressed idiot trying to kill herself?" Pansy sulked.

"No, before that," Dumbledore said. Pomfrey was staring at him incredulously. "... What I meant to say is, I do not at all think you are depressed," he corrected hastily. "I take the well-being of my students very seriously."

"Yeah, sure. Anyways, I was in Professor Umbridge's office, together with some other Slytherins. We, uh, wanted to talk to her about our homework."

"Homework?"

"Yeah."

"How curious." _She is hiding something. No student would voluntarily discuss homework. No non-Ravenclaw student at least._

"And then I fell out of the window," she continued quickly. "That's it."

"If I may be so bold as to ask, how exactly did you manage that?"

"Err—" Pansy paused. "I, kind of, slipped."

"Out of a window?" He did not quite manage to keep the incredulity out of his voice.

"Yes!" Pansy nodded quickly. "You know, I'm very clumsy. See?" She then proceeded to roll out of the bed, landing on the floor with a thump.

Dumbledore raised a single eyebrow. "Certainly." _She is a Slytherin, hence this must be one of Tom's nefarious schemes. But he would not entrust her with an important mission, so who was responsible?_ Lost in thought, he was groping after one of his lemon drops. At least before he noticed that he was no longer in his office—his hand was just awkwardly fumbling in the air. "Was young Mr Malfoy with you at the time?"

Pansy's eyes widened. "Maybe?" she offered, while climbing back into her bed. "No. I mean, yes. Yes! But he wasn't making me trip, or anything!"

"Thank you, Ms Parkinson, this has been quite enlightening," Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling again. "Rest assured that I will conduct a full investigation. Slippery windows will not be tolerated in this school."

As he passed Pomfrey on his way out, he whispered to her, "That poor girl must be in shock, quite possibly with short-term amnesia. Run a few checks on her, would you?"

Pomfrey nodded curtly in acknowledgement. As he left the room, Dumbledore was planning how to best investigate this matter. _My students are at risk, this must be resolved as quickly as possible._ He nodded to himself. _I am going to drop by Dolores' office at once, hopefully I will be able to find some clues._

11


	3. Being on Time

Miraculously, Luna managed to survive her trip on Certain Death. After passing for what passed as security, they were in the Department of Mysteries, walking through a large hall. Shelves were loaded with thousands of translucent orbs all around them, softly glowing spheres made out of crystal. So many orbs, in fact, that the whole chamber was filled with an eerie blue light.

Each orb was placed on a small stand, with a label underneath. They were covered by a thin layer of dust, but still readable without difficulty.

"'B.B., to T.W.E., Ylvia Evermoore and unknown.'" Hermione said. "What could that be?"

 _The record of a prophecy? We are literally in the Hall of Prophecy, it's not that difficult to guess. Has she never read 'Ministry: A History'?_ Luna briefly considered informing the others, but quickly decided against it. _There are much more dangerous places in here to spend our time._

She sighed. _Why did I join them on their wild gnome chase, again? They would have been just fine on their own._

"Come on, Hermione, Sirius has to be here somewhere," Harry said, drawing her attention away.

After they walked for a short while, it was his turn to stop and inspect one of the orbs.

"What are you doing, mate?" Ron asked. "Weren't you just saying we've got to move?"

"Yes—but look!" Harry pointed at the label. "My name's on there."

"'Made by S.P.T, to A.P.W.B.D, Dark Lord and (?) Harry Potter' You're right, it is!" Hermione said. "But why would the Ministry store a glass ball with your name on it?"

While the others were trying to come up with theories, Luna's mind was working furiously. _Prophecy with Harry and Voldemort. A.P.W.B.D must be the headmaster, no one else has that many initials. Explains why Voldemort went after Harry. But that means he knew._ She was staring off into space, which went unnoticed by the others as it was not exactly uncommon.

Luna could not shake the feeling that there was some important connection missing. In a sudden insight, she noticed the rows upon rows of orbs she was staring at. _Thousands of orbs. Probability of finding a specific one is very small. Implies an outside influence, maybe a 'Notice-Me' charm._ It snapped into place. _Sirius is not actually in the Ministry. Voldemort wants Harry to take the prophecy. But why?_

She shook her head. _Unimportant. We have to leave right now._

"Harry—," was all she managed to get out before noticing that he had already taken the prophecy from its stand.

"It's really warm," Harry noted, holding the glass orb in his hand. "Almost as if—"

"Well done, Mr Potter." Lucius Malfoy's smooth voice was unmistakable. He suddenly appeared behind them, standing beside Bellatrix Lestrange. Several other Death Eaters accompanied them, all with masks on their faces. They had their wands out, although not pointing at the six students. "Now, hand this over and none of your friends has to die. We can be adults about this, can't we?"

"You won't intimidate us, you slimy snake!" shouted Ron, displaying his advanced negotiation skills.

While they continued trading insults and more or less veiled threats, Luna was analysing the situation. _We're both outnumbered and outclassed. We can't win a straight fight. So what can we use to our advantage?_

Lestrange apparently lost her temper and tried to fire a spell at them. However, Lucius gripped her arm, stopping her. _Interesting. Maybe they don't want to shatter the orb._ It seemed that Harry had realised this too, as he was currently threatening to do just that. And it appeared to be working—for the moment.

 _So they have to defeat us cleanly, while we are only trying to get away. Our best bet is to generate a lot of chaos. That shouldn't be a problem for these Gryffindors._

She nudged Hermione. "Let's collapse the shelves," she whispered into her ear. "We can run the other way."

Hermione passed the message on, and they were preparing for her signal. " _Reducto!_ " the Gryffindor shouted, firing off a powerful curse. The shelf to their right broke immediately, and orbs started falling. Luna was a bit envious at this effortless display of magic. _I can't get mine half as good!_

Hermione's spell was quickly followed by others, and they broke into a sprint, trying to outrun the destruction they initiated. Orbs were falling to pieces everywhere. Ghastly apparitions rose from the shards, reciting prophecies of times long gone.

 _Actually, they only want Harry and his prophecy, right?_ Luna thought. _I could just slip away and hide until this blows over. Leaving Harry alone like this is unfortunate, but this is out of my league. He'll have to handle himself._

At the end of the row, Luna quickly turned left, unnoticed by the others over the pandemonium that was centuries of history being obliterated. She reached a side door, rushing through it immediately. Shutting the door, she considered the badly-lit room. It was a small archive, with a single desk standing in the middle. Filing cabinets were lining the walls, each one going almost to the ceiling. Some of them were open, displaying stacks of old folders.

Luna eyed the cabinets carefully. _There may be just enough space to hide myself. Only an idiot wouldn't look, but that's what I'm surrounded by._

* * *

Umbridge's office was in shambles. Debris was all over the floor, and not a single one of her decorations had escaped unscathed. It looked like a battle had taken place here.

"Which may be exactly what happened," Dumbledore mused. He stepped inside carefully, trying to find the remains of anything that might point him in the right direction. He raised his wand, doing a simple circle.

" _Furvus Fatere_."

A detection charm, revealing traces left over by dark magic. _If one were to use a definition of dark magic more appropriate for the fifteenth century, that is. Alas, I cannot cast the newer ones, so this will have to do._

A fountain of sparks erupted from his wand, coalescing around a few places. There was a surprisingly large cluster on one of the flowerpots. _Curious indeed._ Dumbledore was intrigued. But even a closer look at the plant did not reveal a nefarious mastermind with evil intentions encased in a dark artefact of unspeakable terror. It was, for all he could tell, just a flower.

"Maybe Dolores used a fertiliser potion?" he wondered aloud. "I think this spell classifies all potions as evil, one of its many shortcomings." He looked at the sparks that were still collecting around the pot. "Quite a powerful potion that was. And it shows, that really is a nice petunia. I am going to put it in my office, it will look fabulous there."

Turning away from the flowerpot, he noticed many small clouds of sparks suspended in the air, most likely due to minor combat spells. But one of them was clearly standing out, gathering almost as many as the flower did. Furrowing his brow, Dumbledore stepped closer. "Surely this must be a dark spell. Only the most powerful and evil curses would have such a strong reaction. That young Mr Malfoy would cast such a spell, I would not have thought." He sighed, feeling the weight of his years pressing down on him. "Alas, the pieces fall where they may. Hopefully, it is not too late for him."

He knelt down on the ground, searching. "It is still only a suspicion," he reminded himself. "I need to find definitive proof before I take action."

Suddenly, he stumbled upon something interesting: A small radish-like fruit, made into an earring. "A dirigible plum, if I am not mistaken. I remember Ms Lovegood wearing them, and quite fashionable at that." Then he realised the implications. "Oh, no! That poor girl must have been at the receiving end of that spell." Dumbledore looked sadly at the orange fruit in his hand. "It is hardly fair, after all she has been through. And to think that I must force her to relive it again! But it has to be done."

Shaking his head, he rose. "Life can be cruel sometimes. Such an innocent girl, she would never hurt a fly. Yet here we are."

After a look at his clock, he decided to finally meet with Severus and Harry. "I wonder how well they get along. Fawkes, could you take me?"

However, no phoenix was forthcoming.

"Fawkes? Please? We do need to go."

Sighing again, he settled in for a bit of waiting for his stubborn familiar.

* * *

Luna was currently hiding, leaning into the rough wood of the filing cabinet. She was thinking about increasingly morbid ways to deal with an attacker, having already exhausted her repository of lethal (or at least extremely painful) spells.

 _I could jump them while they're unprepared, and stab at their eyes with one of my hairclips._ She shook her head. _No, I'd probably miss and make a fool out of myself. But maybe—_ Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Luna tensed. _This is it._

The door creaked open ominously, and someone stepped into the room. Luna was holding her breath, her heart beating quickly in her chest. Her fingers were shaking, despite Luna's best efforts to hold them still.

The intruder—Luna could not see them through the thick wood of the cabinet—was slowly stepping into the room, closing the door carefully.

"Come on, little girl, I know you're here." It was definitely a man's voice, singsonging as if talking to a child. "You can't hide from me for long." She heard footsteps coming closer. Her cabinet was right beside the door, and it sounded like he was standing directly in front of it.

Luna could hear him gripping the handle, slowly turning it. She tried to get a stronger grip on her wand, but her fingers just were not cooperating.

Suddenly, he tore open the door of her cabinet, pointing his wand at the inside, ready to strike.

There was nothing there, of course, except a few old, dusty folders. Luna's heart was still pounding like crazy, but this did not stop her from feeling a little bit smug at hiding on top of the cabinet, not inside. _No one ever looks upwards._

"Oh," the man said, scratching his head. "Maybe not that one. Weird—I had a good feeling about it, too." He turned to the next one. "No matter, I'll find you eventually. I owe it to Trevor, after what your friends did to him."

The small traces of smugness vanished quickly as the man walked around the room, checking each cabinet. Luna listened nervously, growing increasingly anxious. He still had not thought to check above them, but all it would take was a single look and she would be found out.

Finally, he finished his round. After giving the cabinets one last suspicious look, he stepped towards the door. Instantly, Luna was flushed with relief. _He missed me!_ A bright smile appeared on her face. _I did it!_

Then the man paused. "Oh, I should check, just to be sure."

All feelings of triumph disappeared as quickly as they had come, leaving her on edge, once again.

" _Homanum revelio_."

 _No!_ Luna shouted in her head, but to no avail. She could see a green mist appear around her, emitting a faint green glow. His wand would be glowing in the same green, indicating the presence of another human.

He chuckled. "Thought you could trick me, did you? But I'm not going to fall for this." She could hear a few more footsteps, he appeared to search for the traitorous glow. A few minutes passed, but he did not appear to find her.

 _He's probably too thick to look upwards. So, I'm still fine?_ Luna was starting to feel cautiously optimistic again.

She heard him stomping his foot. "Okay, this is getting ridiculous. _Point me_!" Luna could not see his wand, but she had no problems imagining it pointing straight at her. Ice flooded her veins.

" _Expulso!_ " she shouted, jumping down. She fell awkwardly to the ground, her left arm painfully taking the brunt of the fall. Her curse missed her target completely, but it still hit close enough that the explosion kept him off-balance. Not wasting any time, Luna cast in rapid succession, " _Confringo_. _Diffindo_. _Ossifrango_." Her wand was a blur, long hours of practice on Hagrid's pumpkins paying dividends.

The first two curses went wide, and the man had recovered enough to swat away her third with a slash of his wand. Luna was scrambling to get to the door, knowing she was utterly outmatched.

"You're not getting away, you witch!" the man growled. " _Colloportus._ " His spell hit the door, locking it shut.

Luna did not waste any time trying the handle and turned around. " _Reducto_. _Relashio._ " She took a breath, using the moment to fire off a silent stunner. Noticing a dark red curse heading her way, Luna hastily stepped to the side.

Her opponent had managed to produce a shield, which her hexes splashed against, dispersing uselessly. "Dabbling in dark magic, are we?" he sneered. "Let me teach you a lesson, little girl. _Adflictus._ "

Luna tried to twist away, but she misjudged the direction and it clipped her right shoulder. "Aah!" she cried out involuntarily, as a wave of pain hit her. She stumbled, falling to the floor in a heap. Her right arm was throbbing. She tried to stand up, pushing herself off with her other hand, but the man was quicker.

" _Expelliarmus._ "

The disarming charm hit Luna square on, throwing her back down onto the ground. Her wand was wrenched from her hand by an invisible force, flying back towards her attacker. Panting, she could only look helplessly as her opponent snatched it out of the air, smirking at her arrogantly.

"Not so uppity now, are we?" He waited for an answer, but Luna had no interest in wasting her breath. Her mind was racing to find a possible path to escape, but she was coming up short. "Nothing? That's not very polite." He grinned maliciously, slowly and deliberately pointing his wand directly at her. "No worries, I'll teach you some manners. _Crucio_."

The spell was racing towards Luna, still lying prone on the floor. She had no chance of avoiding it, even if she had tried. But her mind went entirely blank, preparing for the inevitable.

It struck her, and in an instant, it felt like all muscles in her body were tensing up simultaneously. But, after a moment, it was gone. _He can't actually cast it!_ After an awkward second of silence, her rational mind finally caught up.

"Aaaah!" Luna started screaming her heart out. _Quick, pretend it works before he tries something else!_ She thrashed around wildly and swung her arms against the ground, ignoring her protesting shoulder. _I can't imagine this looks convincing._

While rolling around the floor, still screeching awkwardly, she grabbed one of her backup wands. _I only get one chance at this. It's now or never._ Rolling to her feet, she whipped out her wand, aiming carefully. " _Imperio._ "

Surprised for the second time this evening, the man did not dodge the curse. It smashed right through his shield, directly into his stomach. Luna was once again in another person's head. _Drop the wand_ , she ordered.

But he was much stronger then Crabbe had been—her will was met with equal force. He was trying to push her out, but Luna was having none of that. Summoning all her will, she slowly pried his fingers apart.

However, he did not surrender. With brunt effort, Luna was being wrestled out of his head bit by bit, losing her control an inch at a time. She did not let go easily, fighting at every step. For a while, neither could gain the upper side, both appearing to be equally matched. But suddenly there was a crack, and the tenuous equilibrium ripped apart. Luna was rebuked violently, once again in her own head. She could hear ringing in her ears and felt the beginning of what was going to be an awful headache.

Shaking her head, she recovered only moments before her opponent. Her wand was already moving on instinct. " _Incendio._ " A stream of flames erupted, making their way over. But Luna was not yet done. _I'll play my trump card as often as I want._ Narrowing her eyes, she cleared her mind of all distractions, focusing only on her enemy. " _Imperio_ ," she intoned evenly.

Their minds clashed once more. His resistance was as strong as before, matching every attack she could muster. She was not gaining any ground, just barely managing to hold her own.

But this time was different. Luna was not trying to gain the upper hand, she was content to remain at an impasse. Time was working in her favour.

After what seemed an eternity, her opponent's concentration faltered, just for an instant. He was back in full force a moment later, but the first crack had appeared. Luna calmly kept up the pressure, not letting her focus waver. Meanwhile, he grew increasingly frantic. Desperate attempts to force her out failed time and time again. His calm facade was crumbling. Slowly but surely, Luna was making progress.

And then, it snapped. Just like that, she was in.

Now in full control, Luna swiftly had him drop his wand. She left his mind and immediately fired off a barrage of stunners. Opening her eyes, she took in the situation.

A strong smell of burned meat hit her nose. His robes had caught on fire and were cheerfully burning away. _Impressive, that he managed to hold on for that long._ The man was slumped down on the ground, having been hit by multiple full-strength stunners without a wand to defend himself. Summoning a stream of water to kill the flames, Luna was already planning her next move.

 _If I eliminate him, someone will investigate. If I don't, he's going to wake up. Either way, I'll have to move. So let's obliviate him and get out of here._ She snapped his wand, just to be safe. Then, she implanted a false memory of him tripping in a puddle of water, hitting his head and breaking the wand in the process, which then burst into flames. _Completely implausible, but wizards believe everything._

* * *

Voldemort walked into the Atrium, prepared to lead his loyal followers into battle. _I will spring this trap, and then I have both the Potter boy and the prophecy will finally be mine! Not bad for a few hours of work._

However, the first thing he saw was Bellatrix Lestrange duelling with aforementioned Harry Potter. Voldemort sighed. _This was supposed to be an undercover operation. Am I surrounded by idiots?_

"Baby Potter thinks he can just smash the prophecy, does he?" Bellatrix raged, although her high-pitched voice made it sound a lot less threatening. "But I—his most loyal follower—will teach you not to cross the Dark Lord! _Crucio!_ "

 _Great._ Voldemort resisted the urge to turn around and leave this mess alone. _So not only is our cover blown, but the prophecy is lost as well._ He looked at a clock on the wall. _It might have been half-past six after all. Still, failing this badly in just over one hour?_

Taking a few steps forward, both combatants noticed him. Potter was looking at him warily, but with steely resolve. The boy was standing next to a fountain with a handful of golden statues in it, leaning heavily on its side. Voldemort lazily pointed his wand. _Let's just get this cleaned up and then I can do some more research this evening._

"Potter! Surrender, and I will spare your friends' life."

"I'd rather die! _Expelliarmus!_ " Potter looked like he had been wrestling a giant, his clothes were full of holes and he could barely stand, but he was being as annoying as ever.

 _This does not even make sense! You die anyway, why not take my offer?_ Voldemort shook his head frustratedly, the spell missing him completely. "Foolish. I have gone further in the arts of Duelling than any have dared. _Avada Kedavra_." His curse made its way towards Potter, which would finally rid him of that nuisance.

 _Surely this is the end of it. It's not like one of his relatives can take the spell for him. Again._

Suddenly, one of the statues stood up and walked in front of his spell. It shattered into pieces, and the explosion momentarily left a stunned silence in its wake.

Voldemort's mind was immediately snapping to a conclusion. _The old meddler!_ He cursed. _This just got a lot more difficult._

Despite his vast knowledge of dark wizardry, and copious amounts of experimenting on new spells, Dumbledore still had a lot more magic at his disposal. _The power he commands with his wand is just ludicrous. I have to beat him quickly, he easily outclasses me._

Looking around, Voldemort could indeed see the aged headmaster stepping into the atrium, phoenix on his shoulder. His wand was already moving, forming elegant, precise motions similar to conducting an orchestra.

All around them, statues began to come to life. Most immediately focused on Voldemort, marching on him with their weapons drawn. Others walked to Bellatrix, doubtlessly trying to incapacitate her. A few were even making their way to the fireplaces, probably calling in reinforcements. _This is not fair! It would take me hours to create a single golem—well, unless I sacrifice part of my soul—and he just casually makes an army?_

Voldemort unleashed a barrage of shattering hexes, blowing the golems advancing on him into pieces. Before he could catch a breath, Dumbledore waved his wand and a huge fireball appeared, heading towards Voldemort. Desperately, Voldemort twisted and apparated behind his opponent, feeling the intense heat on his skin.

 _The wand movement had nothing to do with fire at all! He's mocking me!_ Voldemort wrecked his mind for a spell destructive enough to turn this farce into his favour. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Bellatrix getting overwhelmed. _That ice spell showed promise, didn't it?_

Drawing some shapes vaguely resembling the correct runes, he shouted, " _Impetus glaci_ —" He paused for a moment, having just thought of something. Shrugging, he added, "— _Maximus_!" _More is always more._

Thousands of ice spikes appeared before him out of thin air, launching themselves forwards in a deadly storm of ice.

However, Dumbledore appeared unfazed. Without even moving his wand, the spikes melted in front of him, raining down harmlessly.

Voldemort cursed. _And this smug look behind his inane half-moon spectacles._ Furious, he fired off a Killing Curse. The deadly spell headed straight towards his opponent, so powerful that no magic barrier could stop it.

Still, Dumbledore did not even need to raise a finger—his phoenix just dove into the path of the curse. It fell to the ground with a scream, but Voldemort knew it would be reborn in just a few minutes. An inconsequential loss, as Dumbledore was preparing his next attack.

A nearly invisible ray erupted from his wand, zooming in on Voldemort. It passed Potter only a few feet away, who flinched as it flew by. Usually, the more translucent a spell the less power it had, but Voldemort did not let himself be fooled that easily. _He somehow got past that limit. These things will probably cut through my weaker shields like goblin steel through butter._ He could even feel the power from this distance, raising the hairs on his arm.

Without wasting time, he poured all his power into the most powerful shield spell he could muster.

When the unknown spell hit, there was a sharp chime. Voldemort flinched, but his shield held. Still, he had exhausted most of his reserves. He could not keep this up much longer.

 _He never raises any wards against apparition, at least. I can leave at any time._ Looking at the battlefield one more time, Voldemort decided to cut his losses.

He tried to twist through space towards Malfoy Manor, but immediately felt like crashing into a brick wall. Cursing, he looked around, trying to find the source of this enchantment.

Just at the other side of the room, a handful of aurors were slowly stepping out of a lift, followed by the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. They had raised shields and were advancing in defensive formation. Voldemort felt a cold shower running down his back. _Dumbledore alone is hard to deal with, but aurors as well? I have to get out of here, right now!_

* * *

 _A few minutes earlier..._

After Fawkes had finally deigned to take him, Dumbledore was now on his way into the Ministry's Atrium. _I do hope Harry's lesson is progressing nicely._ He hummed softly to himself. _I am sure they are getting along fabulously._

"Potter! Surrender, and I will spare your friends' life." Dumbledore startled. _That does not sound like Severus at all._

"I'd rather die!" _What is going on here?_

Stepping into the Atrium, he took in the luxurious interior. The walls were made out of marble, lined with bronze statues. In the centre was that hideous fountain. And there was Harry, leaning onto the fountain. He looked decidedly worse for wear. _Oh my, what happened to the poor boy?_

He was facing off against Voldemort, who was casting a familiar, sickly green curse. Dumbledore wasted no time. Drawing his wand in one smooth motion, he hastily considered his options. _Even if I could cast decent shields, that curse cannot be blocked. I have to throw something in its path, but both levitation and conjuration are out of consideration. I do not have nearly enough power for that._

Then he suddenly remembered something. _There was that section in 'Ministry: A History' about the guardian statues, was it not? They have intricate spellwork, just needing a little push to defend the Ministry._

Weaving a simple enchantment, he commanded the statue closest to Harry—one of those in the fountain—to walk into the path of the curse. And it was just in time, as Voldemort finished his wand motion and the green bolt began its deadly path.

The golden man managed to intercept it barely. Dumbledore breathed a sigh of relief. _Thank Merlin, Harry is safe for now._

Continuing to draw patterns with his wand, he triggered the enchantments on all other statues, causing them to attack Voldemort. One of them he sent to the minister's office, hoping that Fudge would be wise enough to bring a few aurors. _I will need any backup I can get, Tom's magic is magnificently superior to my own._ He nudged Fawkes. "You know what to do."

While Voldemort had no problems blasting the statues into pieces, destroying century-old marvels of magic, Dumbledore could feel his familiar gathering his own magic. The headmaster swung his wand grandiosely, trying to look like he was about to unleash an unbelievably powerful spell.

Finishing his gestures, he finally levelled his wand directly at Voldemort. For a few seconds, nothing happened. Dumbledore was standing awkwardly, desperately struggling to seem intimidating. _Surely Tom must notice this farce!_

Eventually, Fawkes came through, creating a gigantic ball of flame. But Voldemort just twisted casually out of its way, disappearing from his view.

Dumbledore spun around, just in time to see his enemy conjure a volley of sharp, icy projectiles, any one of which would probably be fatal. Stunned, he failed completely to react. Fortunately, his phoenix created an enormous wave of heat, dissipating the ice not a moment too early. _I am getting too old for this!_

Not giving them a moment of rest, Voldemort now fired another Killing Curse. This one was headed straight for the aged headmaster, who could not do anything but look his approaching death in the eye.

Again, his familiar saved him, sacrificing himself to the curse. Dumbledore felt a brief surge of relief, which was quickly replaced by his growing panic. _With Fawkes gone, how am I going to survive? I cannot even conjure a shield, for Merlin's sake!_

He let out a calming breath. _I must stall Tom for as long as I am able. If I manage to live for another minute or two, Fawkes will be back._ His face was grim. _That much I owe to Harry, even if our chances are slim._

Performing another series of flicks and swishes, he sent one of his recent creations towards Voldemort. It was based on this Muggle invention called 'electricity', and just 'charged' the air it travelled through. The spell had basically no power at all, but the effects of this 'electricity' were similar enough to potent magic to fool most wizards. _Still, it is almost transparent. Tom must notice this,_ he thought. _He can easily ignore it._

His opponent simply raised a shield, coolly letting the spell fly into it. It did nothing, of course, and Dumbledore was growing increasingly desperate. _This cannot go on! Tom's next curse is going to hit me, and that will be the end of it._ But despite how hard he searched for any answers, none were forthcoming.

 _Forgive me, Harry, for I have failed you._

He felt a single tear running down his cheek. _Such a bright young man, with his whole future in front of him. I know his parents will be disappointed with me, they always trusted me to keep him safe._

Suddenly, his increasingly melancholic thoughts were interrupted.

From one of the lifts on the side, the minister stepped out, followed by a squad of aurors. They were slowly walking towards the atrium. Hope began to spread in Dumbledore's chest. _Cornelius came! There is still a chance we can win this!_

* * *

 _I have to distract them._ Voldemort was not at all amused at this new development. _I can't possibly fight both the old fool and professional aurors!_

His gaze fell upon Potter, who was still standing next to the fountain. His lips formed a cruel smile. _Yes, that'll do just fine._ " _Legilimens._ "

Now inside the brat's head, he seized control of Potter's body and started screaming as loudly as he could. _This should keep them busy._

It worked like a charm, and Dumbledore stopped his assault to rush to the boy. The aurors were still some way away, so he had maybe a minute to plan his escape. _Let's see. They have Anti-Apparition charms up, and I don't know any spell to break those. But they don't actually know that, do they?_ An idea formed in his head. _I should also take Bella. I have so few servants capable with a wand that I cannot waste any._

He swiftly stepped towards Bellatrix, who had been incapacitated by one of the statues. Grabbing her, he looked around to make sure the aurors were watching him. Spinning in an exaggerated fashion, he raised his wand and flicked it down sharply, causing a loud crack to echo in the hall. Quickly, he followed that by an invisibility spell on both himself and Bellatrix.

 _Those idiots will think I disapparated,_ he thought smugly. _Now I just hide somewhere for a few hours and then walk out of here in broad daylight._ Glancing in direction of Dumbledore, who appeared to be talking to Potter, he dropped Bellatrix on the floor, careful not to make a sound. _I don't think they are going to check for her. So let's just leave her here, she'll find her own way out._

Throwing a last look at the aurors, who did not seem inclined to cast any detection spells and were instead whispering to each other, Voldemort made his way into the Department of Mysteries. _I know the perfect hiding place. No one is going to search there._

After he arrived in the Entrance Chamber, he conjured a stone to keep the door open so that the walls would not start turning. Voldemort walked down the doors to his left.

 _Which door was the Love Chamber again? They won't think to look in there, it's always locked._ He stopped in front of one of the doors. _Right, it's definitely this one._ Casting his strongest unlocking spell ( _Alohomora Maximus_ ), he braced himself and stepped through the door, casually vanishing his stone in the process. The door swung shut behind him, and a rumbling noise could be heard.

He was standing in a dark chamber. Planets were floating above him, casting a dim light with their glow. The room seemed to consist of nothing but a black, empty void. No walls were in sight, it appeared as if the floor extended into infinity.

Voldemort could feel the magic pulling him upwards, defying the rules of gravity, but he cast a variant of the weightlessness charm he discovered after tinkering with the spell formula. Apparently, removing the limiter and performing both the incantation and the wand movement backwards caused the opposite effect, dragging its target down with enormous force. Also, from time to time it exploded without apparent reason, somewhat limiting its usefulness.

 _Well, perhaps this door wasn't the Love Chamber after all. Regardless, I can remain in here just as well._ Throwing a disapproving look at the door, he started walking forwards.

* * *

Luna cautiously peeked around a corner. She had been lucky to avoid any stray Death Eaters up until now and did not want to end her streak prematurely. The room seemed to be empty, however, and she hurried along the wall. Her gaze swept through the area, searching for a good hiding spot.

It was filled with shelves upon shelves of numerous kinds of clocks, hourglasses, calendars and other devices, all related to time in one way or another. There was a desk with a bell jar on it, emitting a sparkling yellow light. In it, a hummingbird was continually hatching from its egg, rapidly growing into a mature bird, only for the process to reverse and start over again. _The cycle of life. How poetic._ Luna raised one eyebrow and turned away. _And useless._

A collection of small hourglasses caught her gaze. They were encased in shining metal rings, attached to a necklace. Her eyes widened. _Are those time-turners?_

Walking towards the shelf, she carefully examined one of them. There was a tiny inscription written on the rings, which Luna could not quite make out. The hourglass was filled with a sparkling, auburn powder, slowly drifting inside the glass. _It sure seems like it._ Her mind was whirring with possibilities. _There is so much I could do! Being able to time-travel is a game-changer, even with all the limitations._ But then another thought occurred to her and Luna sobered up quickly. _It's probably enchanted with some heavy-duty anti-theft spells. They'll track me faster than I can say 'Askaban'._

She cast a glance over her shoulder, wary of any Death Eaters.

 _Still, surviving the next few hours has priority. I can just leave them afterwards._ Luna took two gloves out of her robes, which contained a variety of useful items, and put them on. _This should help against the simpler touch-based wards._ Holding her breath, she slowly reached out and carefully grabbed two of them.

Nothing seemed to happen, and Luna relaxed a bit, dropping the two time-turners into one of the pockets. After looking around and ensuring she was still alone, she cast a silencing spell on the remaining time-turners—immediately followed by a _Reductor_ curse.

After all, it wouldn't do to have valuable resources lying around for her enemies to find.

Leaving the room behind, Luna found herself in a large chamber. She could not make out the other walls through the darkness, the only thing visible being about a dozen spheres floating in mid-air, shapes she recognised from her astronomy class. There was no hiding place in sight (apart from hiding in plain sight). Taking a look at her robes, which were in standard-issue black, she whispered a quick colour-changing charm and dyed her hair black as well. Looking back cautiously once more, Luna walked forward—where she was immediately confronted with the next problem.

 _Their stupid weightlessness charm doesn't exclude people! That's like one of the first things you learn how to do in runes, right after a basic limiter._ Hovering awkwardly in the air, Luna could neither reach the ground, nor was she able to get a hold of something to push herself off. She tried to struggle against the air, but that did not move her an inch. Panic began to spread through her.

 _The next one through the door can just fire at will! I can't believe I got stuck in this second-rate enchantment._

Suddenly, there were quiet steps in front of her. Luna immediately tensed up, her heart hammering away.

 _Was that a whisper?_ Holding her breath she struggled to make out anything. But all she could hear was her own pulse, traitorously loud. Straining her eyes for the faintest hint of the source, Luna still was not able to see anything in the dark expanse of the room. _Maybe it was just my imagination? I have to get out of this right now!_

Luna tried to calm herself, shakily taking a deep breath. _Think. I can put glue on the bottom of my shoes, so that I can walk. But if I'm not on the ground, that doesn't help. So, how do I get down?_

 _There are spells to increase one's weight, but I don't know any of them. Though I do know a few to reduce it—my dorm mates cannot shut up about this stuff. So, if magic is out, what does that leave me?_

 _Wasn't there this muggle saying things about some action-reaction principle? We covered it as a special case of Bolpoglatt's Law of Opposites. You throw something, and that thing throws you back, right? But how do I get things I could throw? Transfiguring anything larger than a teacup would take me hours!_

She checked her pockets, but Luna did not take anything heavy with her, for fear it would limit her freedom of movement. _How ironic._ The best thing she could find was her vial of Veritaserum antidote, and that had about half a pint in it. _Likely the same density as water. In other words, insufficient._

 _Wait. Water!_ An idea snapped into place. " _Aguamenti._ " Her wand became a makeshift water hose, propelling Luna forward. She was back on the ground again.

Confidently, Luna charmed her boots sticky and strode forward into the room. After all, if it had taken her a few minutes to figure out, the Death Eaters had no chance of following in her footsteps anytime soon.

* * *

Dumbledore ran forward to Harry, who was slumped down on the ground, unconscious. Voldemort had disapparated not a moment too early. Despite the aurors, the aged headmaster was not sure how that fight would have turned out.

"Harry, are you alright?" Receiving no response, Dumbledore turned to one of the aurors, who were currently securing the area. "Please, take him to the hospital wing. I fear he is still in grave danger."

"Yes, sir!" The auror—a former Gryffindor, if he remembered correctly—levitated the boy towards one of the fireplaces.

Raising his glasses, Dumbledore massaged his eyelids. As he put them back down, he could see, directly in front of him, the Minister of Magic wearing an expression that could only be described as utterly flabbergasted.

He forced a smile. "Cornelius, how nice to meet you at this late hour. I must express my sincerest gratitude. You came to my aid personally in this darkest of hours. Utter selflessness, the mark of a true hero."

"Err...—actually I came to arrest you, your golem completely trashed my office." Fudge coughed, quickly catching himself. "I mean, uh, of course I helped you defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named! Never really doubted you about his return, you know?"

Dumbledore raised one eyebrow. "You certainly fooled me."

"It was just politics, really."

"Of course."

"I'm glad we're on the same page! So, about tomorrow's headline—'Minister Defeats You-Know-Who in Epic Duel' sound good to you? Do you think Potter can give an interview later? It would really boost the popularity!"

He coughed delicately. "I do not think this would be quite appropriate."

"Yes, yes, you're right—I have to seem humble to the public, after all. But what about...—"

The headmaster had to listen to Fudge's rambling, barely able to get a word in himself. Even his patience was being strained. Fortunately, he was eventually saved by one of the investigating aurors.

"Everyone, watch out!" The auror was standing near the fireplace where Harry was currently being lifted through, and had his wand drawn in a defensive stance. "I think someone's here, hiding!"

Another auror, whom Dumbledore recognised as Kingsley Shacklebolt, cautiously stepped closer, casting something on his throat. "Whoever you are, show yourself!" his magically strengthened voice sounded. "If you do not drop your concealment right now, we will be forced to take offensive action!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Luna was still walking farther into the room, which did not seem to have an end. After the planets, it narrowed into a corridor—which she only found out after running into a wall a few times, as everything was still pitch-black. She did not dare to light her wand; that would announce her position to anyone trying to find her.

She had been walking down the corridor for a few minutes, until a strong acid smell assaulted her nose. Immediately, Luna stopped and readied her wand. _Someone is here. Or was here, at least._ She sniffed. _Probably not too long ago, either. Maybe they caused the sounds I heard earlier? But that doesn't make sense._ Luna shook her head.

 _A ministry worker would be home by now, and a Death Eater would hardly have missed me. Right, they are farther down. I don't think this corridor leads somewhere, which means I am trapped. There are Death Eaters in both directions of the corridor._

Taking a deep breath, she considered her newest obstacle. _Well, it's risky, but there is one other direction I could take..._

* * *

 _One hour earlier..._

After moving down the corridor for what seemed an eternity, Voldemort finally decided to stop. He began to set up a set of wards, both supremely dangerous and extremely delicate. These properties were certainly shared by most spells of his own design—usually, his process consisted of adding runes until it stopped exploding. (For combat spells he quit considerably earlier.)

The wards were triggered by portkeys, apparition, detection spells, phoenixes, animagi and once, in an embarrassing debacle, even larger insects. They were sealed tight in all directions, without even the tiniest gaps.

Now safe in the knowledge that no witch or wizard would be able to disturb him, Voldemort settled in for an extended time of patiently waiting. _I am sure they will continue the search for a few days, but no mere mortal can outlast_ my _patience!_

Five minutes later, he gave up, boredom having gotten the better of him. Summoning a light and a piece of paper, he tried to remember the runes he used earlier and got to work.

After fiddling with the formula for quite a while did not turn up any ever-so-subtle mistakes, Voldemort decided that some more experimentation was in order.

" _Impetus Glaci Maximus_ ," he called out, then swiftly looked around for any mishaps. There was no obvious danger, but Voldemort had done this too often to be lulled into a false sense of security. _You never know when a dragonbee is going to crash your warding scheme._ Without warning, a young girl appeared in front of him. _And I am right once again. Not that there was any doubt._

She had long, black hair and wore a Hogwarts uniform. _Ravenclaw_ , Voldemort noted approvingly. _That house makes for the best followers._ Her left hand held a small golden object, whereas the other was gripping a wand.

But the most interesting thing was the look in her eyes, which were focused and calculating, quickly darting back and forth. _Reminds me of a younger version of myself. Not surprising, given the circumstances._

"Well," Voldemort said. "We both know the game by now. You are a Horcrux, which this spell has an annoying tendency to create. Going by the ice golem from earlier, highly resistant to magic but unable to wield a wand. Any suggestions on where I should hide you?"

The girl blinked a few times. "A Horcrux?"

"Yes? You know, the things we use to become immortal? Objects, the very existence of which is my best-kept secret?"

"What?"

"Come on you fool, that should be obvious. I cannot tell some arbitrary person the key to my continued survival, it would be tremendously incompetent." He raised one eyebrow. "I get the impression that you are not very fast on the uptake. The golem was much quicker."

She looked thoughtful for a second. "Oh, right, the Horcruxes. Sure, I remember them. Just a bit confused for a moment." She smiled disarmingly.

 _Yep, that's the smile I practised back in first grade._ Voldemort thought back fondly. _Just had to ignore the mirror making vomiting noises._

"So," she continued. "back to this hiding place thing. Hogwarts seems like a perfect fit, doesn't it? I can blend in perfectly."

"Mhm. That could work. Just don't open the chamber like the last one."

"Yeah, what a disaster." The girl nodded knowingly. "Can you make me a portkey? Like, right now?"

"Hogwarts is warded against this, as you should know!" Voldemort raised his wand. "I am starting to think there's something wrong with you. Hold still while I run a few checks—"

"No! I mean, is that really necessary? Obviously, Hogwarts is warded, we both know that." She paused for a moment. "But the portkey can go to Hogsmeade, and I'll tell them I was sneaking out."

"Oh. I was only testing you, of course. Creating the portkey is well within my considerable power." A thought occurred to him. "Wait. What are you going to tell the teachers? They will notice an additional student, won't they?"

"I'll quietly dispose of some Ravenclaw and replace them, it's not as if anyone remembers the face of these bookworms. You remember this Lovegood girl? She looks similar, and you'll get a spy in Harry's group of friends."

 _Who? I don't think I ever heard that name._ "Of course I've heard of her, you have my memories after all. The plan sounds like one I'd come up with," _I basically did, didn't I?_ "so let us start. _Port_ —"

There was a sudden crack, and the girl's eyes widened in shock, focusing on something behind him.

"Uh," she stammered. "You might want to turn around."

Doing just that, Voldemort found himself face to face with an angry golem.

"You!" it raged. "You left me in the arctic waiting to die of boredom! There will be a reckoning!" With that, it charged forward, icy fists swinging wildly.

Voldemort barely missed being turned into a pulp, his quick reflexes saving him once again. With a flick of his wand, he conjured a stone wall, which was at least a foot thick. Drained by the effort, he felt the world starting to spin around him, but Voldemort shook his head resolutely and soldiered on. Behind him, he could hear steps going away from his position.

 _Maybe he'll try to go around the wall and trigger my wards,_ Voldemort hoped. _An easy way out._

"I know what you are thinking!" Its voice was slightly muffled through the stone, but it seemed to be getting closer. "But I recognise that ward scheme, it is going to explode anyone trying to go through."

Abruptly, the movement behind him stopped.

"Do you know how far you can throw an ice bear?"

The golem was now standing directly in front of him, on the other side of that wall.

"I do," it said.

There was a loud bang, as the golem presumably tried to break it open.

"But I ran out of ice bears."

Another hit. A crack began to form.

"So much snow, and nothing to do."

The crack widened.

"Torture, that is what it is."

"You were there barely two hours!"

"And I have no intention of making it three!"

Its fist crashed into the stone, breaking open a hole.

Immediately Voldemort fired an _Avada Kedavra_ through it, only for the curse to be blocked by a chunk of ice. _Ugh. This thing is resistant against basically everything, and now it can deal with Killing Spells, too?_

The hole was steadily increasing in size, it would not take long until it was large enough for the golem to go through. He was running out of time, fast. _There is not nearly enough time for me to dismantle the wards, which means that I am trapped! And by my own hand, no less._ Cold sweat began to roll down his back.

Turning around, he could see the girl fiddling around with the golden thing in her left hand, obviously unsure what to do.

"Any ideas would be welcome," he called out. "You might as well make yourself useful."

She considered it for a moment. "Why not just hit it with an overpowered warming charm?"

"That thing is highly resistant against magic. Except for pain-based spells, but I highly doubt it is going to be deterred by those."

"Killing Curse?"

"Tried that, it just throws a block of ice to absorb the spell."

"No single-target spells then. What about large-scale conjuration?" Seeming to remember something, she added. "Acid maybe?"

Voldemort grinned. _Devious. I do not know any acid-based spells, but I ought to be able to create one._ Going through the arithmancy, he quickly decided to trust his instincts instead.

" _Aciduamenti Maximus_!" A stream of a green, hissing liquid erupted from his wand, showering the ice-golem through the now almost man-sized hole.

It began to scream and went into a frenzy, trying to reach him at all costs. However, in short order a steaming puddle was all that was left. Voldemort breathed out a sigh of relief. Still, knowing how his spell inventions tended to go, he proactively erected his strongest shield around himself.

Not a moment too early, as it turned out. The acid began to react violently with itself, spewing drops of it all over the place. Some of them passed his wards, which was enough to cause a cascading failure, almost instantly ending up in a giant explosion that would have pulverised him in a fraction of a second, had it not been for the silvery globe surrounding him.

Even so, the sound was deafening, his ears ringing in protest. His shield had held only barely, which was quite troubling, considering how well versed he was in casting it.

Shaking his head to get rid of the ringing, he looked around the scene. Nothing remained of the stone, except a thin layer of dust coating the walls. Behind him, the girl was still there, looking shaken but essentially fine. _She must have been close enough to be inside the shield. How fortunate, I would hate to lose two Horcruxes in this fashion._

"Right," he began, trying to move on from this mess. "I was about to make you a portkey, I believe?"

"Yes!" She nodded furiously. "Please!"

"Very well." However, a thought occurred to Voldemort. "Actually, there is something curious. The golem must have been summoned by my spell, there is no other logical explanation. How, then, were you able to appear?"

"Err—," she stammered. Her gaze was quickly darting from left to right.

Voldemort scowled. He enunciated each word very deliberately. "Who. Are. You?"

"Luna Lovegood, fourth-year Ravenclaw student!" she squeaked.

"Ha! Lord Voldemort can always tell when you are lying! No mere student could have gotten past my wards." A dangerous undertone crept into his voice. "You will not try to fool me again. _Avada Kedavra!_ "

With that, a familiar green curse erupted from his wand, heading towards the girl.

19


	4. Cold Water

Luna was not having the best day of her life. After a wild ride on a flesh-eating monster, followed by a deadly chase through the darkest corners of the ministry, she was now facing Lord Voldemort himself. The man that single-handedly terrorised wizarding Britain for decades. Not only was he more powerful than any wizard, save perhaps Dumbledore, he also was famous for inventing countless spells, all of which could unleash untold destruction and suffering.

In short, she had no chance in a straight up fight. Or in any kind of fight, for that matter.

A green spell she had no trouble identifying raced towards her. Without thinking, Luna twirled to the side, trying to come up with a nonviolent resolution. However, diplomacy had never been Luna's strong suit.

The killing curse passed her by within an uncomfortably close margin. Not bothering to raise up a shield, she shouted, "Don't kill me! Please! I really am just a student."

Lord Voldemort did not seem to believe her, but at least he was not throwing any more killing curses her way. A calculating look entered his eyes. "Fine. I will offer you one chance to save your pitiful life. Surrender and become my loyal servant, and I will spare you."

Not wasting any time, Luna threw down her wand and nodded eagerly. "I'll do it!"

"Err—," he blinked, obviously surprised. "Ah, but you have not yet heard your first mission. You are to go back and assassinate your beloved headmaster! What do you have to say to that?"

Luna could not quite keep the incredulity out of her voice. "I'd do that for a sickle and a knut. Believe me, I've got no problems getting rid of the old fool."

"Mhm." He was studying her intently. "You seem awfully quick to dismiss your former friends. But your thoughts will betray you nevertheless. I have gone further in the Art of Leglimancy than any have dared before." Now his wand was pointing at her again. "It is less painful if you do not resist. Or so I've been told. _Legilimens_."

Swiftly, there was a foreign presence trying to invade her mind. It felt similar to the times she had cast the Imperius curse, but now she was on the receiving end. His probe felt like a sharpened knife, and Luna knew instinctively that any defences she tried to put up would be ruthlessly cut into pieces.

The invader reached for her memories. Offering no opposition, Luna was soon drawn into a swirl of images, smells and sounds, reliving moments of her past.

... The other girls in her room had hidden her socks, again. An eleven year-old Luna was lying in bed, the tears having dried on her cheek. This was one time too many. Deciding that if the world was not being fair to her, she had no obligation in return, Luna plotted her revenge ...

... Anne was crying out, her potion having exploded under her nose. Luna felt a brief pang of guilt, but suppressed it ruthlessly. She had it coming. No one was suspecting Luna. Smiling maliciously, she considered her next move ...

... A sixth-year was being chewed out by the librarian, Mrs Pince. She was gesturing agitatedly to the restricted section, the boy shrinking under her furious gaze. Luna spared a single look, leaving with her now slightly heavier bookbag ...

... Luna rounded a corner, only to see the tail of Mrs Norris, running away. The cat had quickly developed an instinctive fear of her after being subjected to Imperius 'practice', running away as fast as she could. Still, Luna was faster ...

... A Slytherin arrogantly stood up in the great hall, tapping his 'Go Cedric' badge. But instead of 'Potter stinks' it read 'Potions stinks', the student blushing furiously as the others were openly laughing at him. Snape was already there, doubtlessly expressing his displeasure ...

... Crabbe's surprise, as the unforgivable hit him ...

... Pansy shrieking after Luna threw her out the window, still hazy from being obliviated ...

... The Death Eater, set on fire ...

As quickly as it began, it was over. Luna was again alone in her head, slightly dizzy from the sudden change. She tried to focus her vision, and slowly a disconcerting image presented itself to her.

Lord Voldemort was smiling.

"Learning the Imperius, have we?"

Luna nodded weakly.

"And at such a young age, as well. Quite impressive, I have to admit. I was not much younger, myself." He twirled his wand between his fingers, completely ignoring the fidgeting girl in front of him. "I like your methods—what you lack in spell variety, you make up for in creativity."

"Thanks, I guess?"

He was considering her, lost in thought. After a while, he seemed to have reached a conclusion. "It would be a shame to let all that potential go to waste. Here is my offer: You swear an Unbreakable Vow to never act with ill intentions towards me. Then, you will be my loyal eyes and ears in Hogwarts, executing any tasks I see fit.

"In return, I am going to personally oversee your education. The Hogwarts curriculum is full of Imperius-shaped holes." Lord Voldemort paused meaningfully, his eyes boring into hers. "Do you accept?"

Briefly, Luna considered what Harry would do in her situation. _I'm not quite sure, but it probably involves dying._ The moment passed, and she made her choice without hesitation.

* * *

After he had taken her vow—two people were more than enough if one put enough power into the spell—and provided her with the information she needed for her mission, he gave her a rough overview of his organisation. An informed spy was much more useful, in his experience, and she could not give that information away after all. Somehow, hearing about his recent master plans seemed to make her more relaxed.

"—I had Barty Crouch impersonate Moody to gain the trust of the old fool. So he could manipulate the tournament, to make the Potter brat win. And the trophy was a portkey, also placed by my follower, to abduct the boy to the graveyard, where my father had been buried. There, Wormtail harvested his blood for the potion and I had him surrounded by dozens of my most loyal followers." Voldemort huffed. "He still got away, somehow, but it was a good plan."

The girl nodded, shaking with awe.

"Anyway, enough introduction. How did you manage to bypass my wards?" Voldemort asked his newest follower. He would never admit it out loud, but he was completely clueless how that particular stroke of luck had happened.

"Time-Turner. In the next room there were dozens of them lying around."

"Right," he nodded. "I thought it had to be something similar. Come, let's take them with us, they would be of tremendous use to my operations."

"Uhm," she was blushing. "I kind of blew them up."

"What?!"

"I didn't want anyone else to have them. Here, you can have my spare."

"Something at least," he grumbled. After casting a few detection spells, he pocketed it. "No tracking spells. Security has gone down the drain, nowadays a child could stroll in here and take anything they like."

The girl raised an eyebrow. "You don't say."

"Do not get sassy on me. How did you find my hiding place? Certainly, I have gone further down this corridor than any have dared before."

"Well, technically speaking I did it after you. Will do it, in fact. The acid gave it away."

He nodded. "It does have a strong smell. No matter, it is too late to do something about it now."

"Technically—"

"I am going to impart some wisdom, so listen carefully," he interrupted her. "The first rule of time-travel: Do not think about grammar. People have gone insane due to this."

"They have?"

"Are you questioning me?!"

"Yes."

He was taken aback. "You are pushing your luck, little girl. What's your name, anyway?"

"Luna."

"Great. We will begin your training right now. Can you tell me the error in this spell?" Voldemort drew the runes to his earlier ice-spear/golem-summoning spell and wrote the incantation next to it. With flaming letters, of course, this was a matter of style.

The girl studied it curiously. "'Isaz, þurisaz, Raidō'. Sure, makes sense." She turned her head sideways. "Wait. 'Mannaz'? No wonder the spell is not working, that rune is the problem."

"Why? Please pretend I am not a prodigy in this field, even if it may be difficult for you."

"Sure, 'Mannaz' is causing alternating flow, which, if unregulated, will amplify any imprecisions made by the caster and rapidly destabilise the spell."

"Uh-huh." _Surely she is making up words now?_

"Also, and this is maybe a bit too obvious, but there is no limiter which would keep that in check. To add insult to injury, the incantation isn't proper Latin. This spell must have been designed by a complete and utter idiot."

"Err—"

"I guess you could try to get your enemies to cast this. But, realistically, who would be so stupid?"

"Yeah, right," Voldemort laughed awkwardly. "Still, if someone were to do it, hypothetically speaking of course, what would happen?"

"It would go up in a giant ball of flame and kill everyone in the vicinity, including the caster?"

"Couldn't it, say, summon an ice golem?"

"No way." Sadly, it seemed she was not as unintelligent as the rest of his followers. "Hold on. Was this the spell you used when I appeared?!"

"Maybe?"

"And it worked?"

"You saw what happened."

Now she was at a loss of words, alternating between staring at the runes and giving him disbelieving looks.

Voldemort was starting to feel left out. "Lucy? Are you still there?"

"Luna," she corrected absentmindedly. "I cannot wrap my head around this. Would you mind performing the motions for me? I want to run some tests."

A few minutes later, she was pacing furiously around the runes flying in midair, mumbling to herself. Finally, something seemed to snap her out of it.

"Okay, I think I know what happened."

"Do tell."

"First, I should stress that this spell ought to leave you with nothing but a large, flaming crater in your—former—position." She shook her head, then focused on him. "Somehow you manage to perform the motions flawlessly. With inhuman precision, really."

"Some rituals may have been involved."

"Fine. This keeps the 'Mannaz' from destabilising for a few minutes and the alternating flow functions as a pseudo-limiter for the rest. Which was just supposed to summon a projectile, but 'Mannaz' makes it a golem instead."

"See? I really am a prodigy."

"Prodigously lucky maybe."

"Semantics. Could this spell work to conjure a storm of ice-lances?"

"The same spell? I guess if the caster was incompetent enough to forget the motion for 'Mannaz' and did a circle instead." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm. It actually formed a small puddle on the floor.

Voldemort looked away, slightly embarrassed.

"Seriously? How did you ever pass your OWLs without obliviating the examiner?"

"Actually—," he began, but the girl interrupted him.

"I don't even want to know. Next time, run the idea by me, before you blow up any of your own people."

"Ridiculous. Do you honestly think you would be able to improve upon one of my designs? For I have gone further in the field of arithmancy than any have dared before!" Voldemort boomed, trying to get this conversation back into familiar territory. "I could end you here and now, you impudent welp!"

"Lens of Merlin."

Taken aback, he could only look at her in confusion.

"I mean, replace 'Mannaz' with the lens and you'll get a much more powerful spell out of it." Taking a look at him, she added, "That's two circles and a reverse pentagon."

After only a few moments, the corridor had been practically filled with razor-sharp shards of ice, thousands of them being launched at once in a spectacular display. Voldemort was grinning like summer and winter solstice had fallen on the same day, all anger at being talked down to forgotten.

"Impressive," he commented.

"It's nothing, really. A spellcaster with your precision is every arithmancer's dream"

"Right. I truly have gone further in perfecting my wandwork than any have dared before."

"Speaking of going, it is getting late. We'll run into past-me if we stay any longer. That would be, as I'm sure you have forgotten from your arithmancy lessons, bad."

"Bad?"

"It's a technical term, don't worry about it."

Rolling his eyes, he ignored the insult. _She has earned that right, for now._ Voldemort dismissed his light and disillusioned them both, and they started their journey back to the surface.

* * *

Back in the atrium, Kingsley's announcement was met with silence, uncomfortably stretching the moment. No one dared move.

Faintly, Dumbledore could hear suppressed whispers. Everyone tensed up, ready for combat.

Finally, as the situation was about to snap, a young, black-haired girl appeared, a short distance away from him. She wore what Dumbledore instantly recognised as a Hogwarts uniform.

The girl did not move, frozen in shock. As was everyone else. Dumbledore's mind was a whirlwind of questions. _Why would a Hogwarts student sneak around, at this hour, in the ministry, right after an attack? And how?_

He squinted his eyes, but it was too far away for him to see her face well enough. _Too young to be a Death Eater, of that I am certain._ He shook his head, trying to gain his bearings.

But she was faster.

Before anyone reacted, the unknown girl was sprinting towards the fireplace, where the auror had just opened a Floo connection to the hospital wing for Harry. Dumbledore could see Kingsley start to cast a spell, could see the auror carrying Harry hesitating to attack a child, and it was not enough.

Not wasting any time, the unknown girl vanished in a burst of green flames. _She will not have any trouble losing us in the halls of Hogwarts,_ Albus realised. _I can only hope Kingsley was able to get a good look at her face._

The auror was already walking towards him. "Albus, do you have any idea who that was?"

He shook his head. "I fear not. I do have some suspicions, however. Were you able to discern anything?"

"Only got a brief look. But, and this doesn't help at all to clear things up, I'm pretty sure it was Xeno's daughter."

"Young Ms Lovegood?" Dumbledore could not quite keep the disbelief out of his voice.

"I saw her a few times while visiting Arthur, back in the days. A nice girl, maybe a bit dreamy."

"In all honesty, she does not strike me as likely suspect, Kingsley." He smiled disarmingly. "Perhaps your eyes played a trick on you, with all this stress?"

"I know what I saw, Albus."

"Truly? Even putting aside the fact that Ms Lovegood has yet to violate the school rules even once, or that I have always known her to have a kind and forgiving soul, I distinctly remember her hair being blonde."

"It's not as if colour-changing charms were uncommon amongst students her age."

Dumbledore just looked silently at him, eyes twinkling merrily.

Shackebolt gave in. "Fine, I can see your point. It's a bit of a stretch. But please promise you are going to ask her about it."

"Certainly." _I already have to talk to her about the incident in Dolores' office, however reluctant I am to bring up bad memories. A few more questions are hardly going to hurt._ "I will do so right now."

As his usual method of travel was currently indisposed, which Killing Curses had an annoying tendency of doing, Dumbledore made use of the already open Floo connection, vanishing in another, more reliable and less disrespectful kind of fire.

* * *

Stepping into the hospital wing, he noticed Pomfrey just leaving her office.

"Oh, it's you. I thought I heard steps."

 _The girl,_ he concluded, alarmed. "Did you see them?"

"No, I was going through my books, trying to figure out something." She look at him quizically. "Why do you ask?"

"I will have to explain this another time, I am afraid. Now, I must pay a visit to Ravenclaw tower."

"If you say so. However, I've been meaning to talk to you anyway, it's important."

He nodded at her. "I can certainly spare a moment or two."

"Do you remember Ms Parkinson? I did a few routine tests on her. While there were no signs of shock, some of her recent memories were, in fact, gone."

This immediately drew his full attention. "Did you manage to restore them?"

Pomfrey grimaced. "Yes and no. There were no obvious complications with the potion. But, according to her, they got into a fight with Ms Lovegood, of all things, who cast an Unforgivable on Mr Goyle and dropped a defenceless Ms Parkinson out of the window in cold blood."

She gave him a look. "I don't have to tell you how ridiculous that is. There must be something wrong with her still." Gesturing to the sleeping Slytherin, she added, "She was so agitated, I had to administer a Dreamless Sleep Potion. Hopefully things will clear up by tomorrow."

"Most curious indeed." Dumbledore stroked his beard. "Do you have any idea what could have caused this?"

"Sorry," Pomfrey shook her head, frustrated. "I have never seen this before, nor have I heard of something similar. I'll continue searching the literature and ask a few colleagues."

"Please do. It would be quite enlightening to find out what really happened to Ms Parkinson."

The Floo flared up again, ejecting a bruised Harry Potter and the auror warily levitating him. They were followed by four students, escorted by Kingsley Shacklebolt. _What are they doing here?_

Dumbledore greeted them with a wide smile, trying to hide his confusion. "Mr and Ms Weasely, Ms Granger, and Mr Longbottom as well! What brings you here at this late hour?"

Kingsley answered him, tiredly. "We found them hiding near one of the lifts. Apparently, they were on a mission with Harry Potter, but they refused to tell me more. Maybe you—"

"Is Harry going to be alright?" Ginny interrupted. "Professor?"

"He'll be fine." Pomfrey called out from across the room. "Also, don't even think about leaving this room. I may not have a clue what happened, but I'm sure you'll need to be checked out."

"I am going to take it from here," Dumbledore told the two aurors, who nodded and left through the Floo.

"Professor," Hermione began hesitantly, glancing at Madam Pomfrey. "We were helping Harry to rescue _someone_."

"Someone?"

"Yes, Professor. You know who."

"Voldemort?" Dumbledore spluttered, aghast. "Why were you helping Voldemort?!"

Hermione squeaked. "No! We'd never do that."

"My apologies, Ms Granger, I must have misunderstood. Still, I must insist on you revealing the identity of that mysterious someone."

"Sirius," Ron said.

Dumbledore raised his eyebrow. "Yes, Mr Weasley. I am, in fact, quite serious."

"He means Mr Black, Professor. Harry's godfather."

"Oh. Carry on then."

"Those snakes got him," Ron explained. "So we tried to bail him out, but they trapped us."

"Could you elaborate on how they 'got him', Mr Weasley? I do think I would have heard about an attack on Grimauld Drive. I am sure Sirius is enjoying a a quiet evening, catching up with Phineas."

His mood darkened upon remembering what they would be talking about.

"Certainly it would make little sense for Voldemort to keep him at the Ministry of Magic, which is the building with the most aurors in all of Britain. You have to keep in mind that he is trying to lie low at this time."

"No, that's impossible! Harry had a vision," Ginny said resolutely.

Dumbledore felt the beginning of a headache and took a deep breath. _Gryffindors will be Gryffindors._ "Quite. Who did you say was involved in this trap?"

"Malfoy. Figures that one is up to no good," Ron said. "Also, a bunch of others with masks."

"Bellatrix Lestrange," Neville added, quietly.

"Was there possibly a girl your age, with pitch-black hair? About this tall?"

The four looked at each other.

"Nope."

"Didn't see her."

"Sorry, Professor."

Neville just shook his head, looking down.

"I suspected as much," Dumbledore nodded. "Now, how did you four manage to escape those—" _fully-trained, ruthless, brutal_ "—formidable opponents?"

"We were in a large chamber—," Hermione began, before Ron interrupted her.

"Yeah, with those glass thingies!"

Hermione shot him an annoyed look.

"Are you, by any chance, referring to the Hall of Prophecy?"

"It's called that? Anyways, we smashed them."

Dumbledore looked at Ron, dumbfounded. "I beg your pardon?"

"I mean, we blew them all up. Lots of shards, let me tell you that."

"Why in Merlin's name would you do that?"

Ron shrugged. "Needed a distraction."

 _Slow, deep breaths._ "I am afraid you will have to clarify this for me, Mr Weasley. You thought it a passable idea to annihilate a priceless artefact, going back to Merlin himself, because you 'needed a distraction'?"

"Yep, that's about it," Ron said, looking proud. "Just, it really was Hermione's plan, she deserves all the credit."

"Ms Granger?" Dumbledore turned to her, hoping to find some sense in this madness.

Hermione had the decency of looking embarrassed. "I am so sorry, Professor! I had never heard of this room before, and with all those Death Eaters—I thought we were going to die!"

Ginny squeezed her shoulder. "Don't apologise. You got us out of there, and that's what counts, right?"

"Thanks, Ginny." She gave her a grateful look. "But honestly, headmaster, Luna came up with the idea. I just relayed it."

"Ms Lovegood was involved?" He asked, his mind suddenly whirring to fit the pieces together.

"Yes, sir, she came with us to the ministry." Hermione averted her eyes, her voice wavering. "We lost her during the chase."

"I see." Dumbledore stared into the distance, thinking. _I must admit to having dismissed Kingsley too quickly. It seems our mysterious intruder may be her after all. Still, why would she try to hide?_

He turned back to the group, smiling reassuringly. "Please do not give up hope yet, my dears. Ms Lovegood is a capable witch and I will do everything in my power to find her. Now, what happened after your—" He grimaced. "—distraction?"

"We managed to circle around them and get to the lifts," Hermione explained. "But Bellatrix was waiting for us. First, Harry tried to negotiate, but then _someone_ attacked her."

"Sorry," Neville and Ron muttered at the same time.

"Anyway, Harry took her on and told us to run, so we hid in a nearby room until the aurors found us."

"Thank you, Ms Granger. You all showed exceptional bravery and loyalty today—" _And some other things_ , he added inwardly. "—truly honouring house Gryffindor."

Behind them, Pomfrey snorted audibly.

"Now, please let Poppy do her job. Get a good night's sleep, you earned it. Rest assured I will now take matters into my own hands, and find out what happened to your friend."

* * *

Luna was anxiously surveying the contents of the headmaster's office, which she was currently sitting in. She had been in her room just a few moments ago, undoing the colour-changing charm on her hair and trying to figure out a good alibi. But without warning, a phoenix had appeared and taken her here, where she was now waiting for Dumbledore to say something.

 _He must've figured something out, right? Why else would he summon me?_

She noted the desk, which was completely empty, save for a single potted flower and a pile of ash. _Fertiliser, maybe? Remains of the last student he interrogated?_ A bitter laugh escaped her. _Why not both?_

On the walls were a multitude of portraits. Luna recognised a few former headmasters. Some of them were sleeping, but most studied her curiously. _Witnesses,_ she noted out of habit. _Portraits are notoriously hard to get rid of. You can't obliviate them, you can't poison them, and even when destroying the frame they just appear in another and tell the whole story to the aurors._

Luna threw a glance at the aged headmaster, who was still waiting patiently. _Not that I can curse my way out of here, with literally the most powerful wizard of our time sitting across from me. Or maybe the second-most, but the point still stands._

The shelves were filled to the brim with a variety of devices, ticking and clicking and whirring furiously. Not a single one looked familiar to Luna, which did little to fill her with confidence.

"Lemon Drop?"

The unexpected voice startled Luna, whose head snapped around to look at Dumbledore. She stuttered, "N—No, I'm fine." Luna tried to smile politely, but it felt more like a grimace to her. _No chance I'm going to accept anything, Merlin knows what he put in there._

"Suit yourself," Dumbledore shrugged, and took one for himself. He closed his eyes and popped it slowly into his mouth, sighing happily as he did so. _Yeah, that bit of acting is not going to fool me. Even if it is done really well._

Silence reigned again, only interrupted by the constant mechanical sounds, preventing her from concentrating. Luna started fidgeting on her seat. _Surely, he wouldn't interrogate me if he already knew everything? And really, was anything I did illegal?_ Her attempts to calm herself down were utterly unsuccessful. _You mean except the Imperius, which nets an instant vacation on the sunny island known as Askaban?_ she answered herself, sarcastically. _Or joining Lord Voldemort's organisation, which is about as legal as it is competent?_

"Tea?" Dumbledore offered kindly, derailing her train of thoughts. _He really got the act down!_ she noted approvingly, appreciating a masterful deception despite her current predicament. _I'd think he was just a friendly old man having a chat with one of his students if I didn't know better._

She shook her head. "No, thank you."

"Not in the mood for refreshments, are we?" he chuckled. _Oh, snap! He is getting even more suspicious. Quick, I need a distraction!_

Luna's eyes darted back and forth. She laughed, unconvincingly. "Not at all! I—"

"Yes?" he prompted.

Panicked, Luna said the first thing that came to mind. "—just like my tea raw!"

"Raw? How curious."

"Yes! See?" At that, she grabbed a leaf of the plant on his desk and chewed on it, trying to pretend it was the most delicious thing she had eaten all day. Luna swallowed loudly. "Tastes great! You should really try it."

Dumbledore raised a single eyebrow. "You are aware that one usually does not produce tea out of a Petunia?"

"It's an old Lovegood recipe." She nodded quickly. "We drink it all the time at home."

A bell rang in the background, adding to the constant noise. It stopped after a few seconds.

"Certainly," he said. "I have to ask Xenophilius the next time I see him." _Note to self: Edit grandmother's recipe book._

Luna's head suddenly felt lighter, maybe all the stress was getting to her.

Dumbledore continued, now in a more serious tone. "Now, as you may be aware, there have been some _tragic_ events in the recent past." His eyes bored into hers through his half-moon spectacles. "Have you been to the ministry today, by any chance?"

 _Just deny everything,_ Luna decided. _He has no proof._ "N—," she began, but found herself unable to complete the word, her mouth acting against her will. "Yes."

Shocked, Luna stared at the headmaster with wide eyes. _Veritaserum! But how? I didn't take anything!_ Frantically, she went through everything she had eaten in the last few hours. There was only one conclusion. _The flower!_

While trying to project a nonchalant demeanour, inwardly she was fuming. _The old fool tricked me! Somehow he knew I would panic and poisoned the petunia beforehand._ She was taking quick, angry breaths, furious at being outmanoeuvred. _Figures that he would clear his desk to draw my attention to it. And I fell for it—like a Hufflepuff!_

"I thought as much," Dumbledore nodded, seemingly unaware of the trap he had just sprung masterfully. "Could you enlighten me what happened after you were separated from the Gryffindors?"

"Yes," Luna replied automatically, inwardly cursing the potion. "There were Death Eaters. One of them attacked me, but I managed to fight him off." She was choosing her words very carefully. While the dosage was not high enough for her to spill all her secrets freely, it compelled her to answer direct questions and prevented her from lying outright.

"If I may ask, how did you manage that? Not to belittle your skills—" _Oh, now he is just rubbing it in._ "—but they must have been an experienced fighter."

"Imp—," she began, but managed to redirect just in time. "—provising. And luck, a lot of luck." Luna looked at her shoes. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"My sincerest apologies, I did not mean to upset you. I know it must have been a traumatic experience." _I wonder why he is keeping up appearances. For the portraits? Or is it just cruelty?_ "What happened afterwards?"

"I went to a room full of clocks. Then—"

"Were there perhaps any tiny, golden hourglasses?" he interrupted, suddenly curious.

"Yes," Luna answered. "But they had been destroyed." _By me, but he doesn't need to know that._

"Oh," he deflated. "Please, continue."

"Then I got into a chamber with lots of planets floating around. I left it a few minutes later." _Technically true, although one Me had travelled one hour back into the past._ Luna paused for a second. _He's going to ask me about that debacle in the Atrium, isn't he? Let's stop that._ "I got into the Atrium not long after that, about two hours after entering the ministry. Which was at six."

"So, eight o'clock," Dumbledore muttered, then shook his head. "No, that is too late. Did you, by any chance, encounter a black-haired student in the ministry? A girl about your age, same height, your faces look almost identical, and she wears basically the same robes?"

"No, I—I have not," Luna stuttered. "Why would you ask that?"

"Oh, just an old man's curiosity." His blue eyes twinkled at her, which did not calm Luna in the slightest. "Is there something you would like to tell me?"

"No!" She caught herself. "I mean, no, there isn't."

"Quite. Alas, I am afraid I need you to describe your encounter in Dolores'—dare I say, former—office."

Luna felt like she was hanging by a thread. _He knows about that, too? I'm in so much trouble._ She briefly debated telling him everything, maybe with a few tears for show. _But he's probably looking for that. No, let's just hope I managed to destroy all the evidence—then he'll just expel me, which is a lot better than Askaban._ A bitter smile crossed her lips. _Maybe Lord Voldemort will take me. Preferable to starving, if only with a small margin._

"Ms Lovegood?"

"Apologies, Professor," Luna faked a wide smile. "I was lost in thought. We were trying to help Harry contact his godfather, but the Slytherins got us. We fought, and the others and I—," she stopped, searching for the right word. "—won."

"Oh, I doubt neither your nor your friends' abilities. However—," Dumbledore gave her an encouraging smile. "—as headmaster, I am obligated to ask. Were there any illegal or restricted spells cast?"

Luna grit her teeth, but was unable to refuse a direct question like this. "... Yes."

He nodded slowly. "I thought as much. Thank you, Ms Lovegood, telling me this must have taken a lot of courage." Apparently not noticing her grimace, Dumbledore continued. "One more question on this. Could you identify the curse?"

"The Imperius Curse," Luna said, meekly. _Askaban it is. I've just confessed to a crime in a room full of witnesses._

Dumbledore inhaled sharply. "I see. Truly a vile piece of Dark Magic. I feel for anyone that would be subjected to it." Taking in her expression, his face seemed to soften. "Are you sure you do not want any tea? I have found it does wonders for the hurting soul."

"Sure, why not?" Her voice was flat. _It's over anyways, what does it matter?_

When he placed a cup with steaming, hot tea in front of her, the tiny part of her brain that would fight until the very end had an idea. Shrugging her shoulders, Luna decided to go with it. _Things can't get any worse, right?_

Taking a sip, she pretended to burn her tongue badly. "It's so hot!"

"Apologies, Ms Lovegood, I was not aware—"

"No worries," she waved him off. "I always have a vial containing cold water on me, just in case."

He looked at her oddly. "That seems ... quite specific."

Luna took out the vial of Veritaserum antidote and poured it into the cup. Drinking it all at once, she let out a deep breath. "Thank you so much! I feel a lot better now." _Relatively speaking, of course. But maybe I can convince him expulsion is enough of a punishment._

* * *

Dumbledore watched the young girl in front of him curiously. _She has a unique way of dealing with stress, that is certain._ Smiling fondly, he cancelled the lie-detection spell he had been keeping up the whole conversation.

 _And such an honest girl, as well. Not a single lie the entire time, when most people cannot even manage a minute!_ He chuckled to himself. _Well, except the jokes in the beginning. Lovegood humour is quite something._

"Well, this evening has been most enlightening. My sincerest thanks to you, Ms Lovegood, you have been of great help." _Although I still have no clue on the identity of that mysterious intruder, except that is it is not her. At least I know for certain that Tom has placed a spy here, for there is no other way a student would learn an Unforgivable._

Luna looked at him hopefully. "Are you going to expel me?"

"No!" He laughed out loud at that. "That would be ridiculous."

"Alright." Her shoulders dropped down, and she seemed dejected for some reason.

Dumbledore was getting a bit suspicious. "Is there any reason I should do so?"

"No! No. None at all. Nothing whatsoever." Her head was shaking rapidly.

He shrugged. "Alright then. I was planning on giving you and your friends special awards for exceptional bravery and services to the school."

She stared at him, completely speechless.

 _Humble as well! If only all my students were like that,_ Dumbledore thought, wistfully. "You definitely earned it. If you could pardon my curiosity, where did you acquire this much skill in defence?"

"The library, mostly."

"Impressive. You did not break into the restricted section, did you?"

"No!" she laughed nervously. "What would make you say that?"

"I do apologise. Some students are less trustworthy than you, Ms Lovegood. But if you do want to study advanced material, feel free to come to me at any time and I will write you a pass."

This drew a smile out of her. "Thank you, Professor, I might take you up on that."

"Oh, no need to thank me. I am honoured to have such a fine student."

With that, he wished her a good evening, and sent her on her way.

* * *

Luna was walking back to her dorm on pure muscle memory, not paying any attention to her surroundings. _What just happened?_

Then, a wide smile began to form as she considered her future.

 _They won't know what hit them._

* * *

 **AN:** I would appreciate any comments.

15


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